


Seven Days To The Wolves - It Started In The Hallway, Part III

by JayEz



Series: It Started In The Hallway [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Auror trials, BAMF!-Harry-Draco-Ron, Bullying, Explicit Sexual Content, Hogwarts Eighth Year, M/M, Stalking, Werewolves, newts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-01
Updated: 2013-07-13
Packaged: 2017-12-13 16:24:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/826326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayEz/pseuds/JayEz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set immediately after the events of "Part II - A New Era". Draco seems to have a stalker who is jealous of his relationship with Harry. That, however, is not the biggest problem: The number of newly turned werewolves keeps rising and everything points to Fenrir Greyback...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Secret Admirer

**Author's Note:**

> I'm back! Thank you to everyone who's stuck we me so far, I'm glad so many of you like my AU. This is my best part yet, at least in my opinion - I hope you will enjoy it as well. 
> 
> I owe my biggest thanks to [ vernie_klein](http://archiveofourown.org/users/vernie_klein/pseuds/vernie_klein) who volunteered to be my beta for the following parts and is doing an amazing job :) So glad I found you!
> 
> I will post every Saturday, so stay tuned! Part III is finished so there will be no unexpected waiting periods.

Draco didn’t know how long he stood there, rooted to the spot. 

He could take the comments, the notes, and even being shoved into walls but this – this was too much. Why couldn’t they just let him be? If he ever found out who did this, he probably wouldn’t be able to control himself. 

A noise startled him - Blaise, Crabbe and Goyle were entering, and Draco felt his face burn. 

“What’s that smell?” Blaise murmured, scanning the room.

“Who did it? Who?” Draco asked, voice cold like ice. 

“What are you-“ Blaise began but he had already seen the answer. Blaise’s eyes widened. “Who did this?”

“That’s what I’m asking you, Zabini.”

The man glanced from Draco to the bed and back. “It wasn’t us. How stupid do you think we are? We’ve been in the common room all night. Ask Nott if you don’t believe us.” As if on cue, the man entered. “There he is! Nott, you can confirm that the three of us never left the common room after dinner, can’t you?”

Theodore’s eyes narrowed. “I think so, why?”

“That’s why,” Draco almost shouted. He needed to remain calm. _It’s just a bed, nothing that can’t be fixed._

Theodore paled visibly and swallowed. “Who did it?”

“I don’t bloody know! But it has to have been one of this house and the only ones who knew where I slept are in this room! So come out, so I can curse you blind!”

Blaise raised his arms. “Calm down, Draco, it wasn’t one of us.”

“Or so you say!”

“This won’t get us anywhere,” Theodore cut in. “We should get Slughorn.”

“No way!”

“Draco, you have to report this.”

They argued some more but in the end; Draco had no choice but to succumb. He simply failed to turn his bed into its previous state and the colour on the wall seemed to be enchanted as well. 

So Theodore and Draco went to Slughorn’s office. 

“Has anything like this happened before?”

Draco shrugged but avoided eye-contact. Of course, his fellow Slytherin saw right through him. 

“It has, hasn’t it?”

“Yes. It has,” Draco snapped. “Are you satisfied now?” 

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I’m a cowardly Slytherin, remember?”

“Draco, listen-“

“No, I won’t! I’m not going to be victimised, I won’t. I may have lost everything but I still have my pride.” 

That shut the other man up. 

XXX

They had just decided to go to bed when the portrait swung open and they turned, curious. 

Harry knew that something was wrong the moment he saw Draco’s face and after Slughorn and McGonagall had explained what had happened, Harry felt like he was back in the lake with the amulet around his neck. 

“I thought they were leaving you alone?” 

Draco looked up briefly but then evaded his eyes. 

“Apparently Mr Malfoy has concealed some facts from all of us, Mr Potter,” the Headmistress said gravely. 

“Like what?” Harry dreaded the answer. 

“It wasn’t that much!” Draco conceded, though irritably. “Sometimes I’d get notes, but only in Ancient Runes. Someone might have pushed me in the hallways once. Or tripped me.”

“Draco-“

“It wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle!”

“You should have said something!”

“And then what, Harry?”

“We could have told someone-“

“I didn’t want that.”

“But why didn’t you tell at least me?” 

“Because I knew how you’d react. You’d have pressured me to tell or, here’s a thought, gone after the culprits yourself; and Harry, you’ve done enough for me already!”

“Gentlemen,” McGonagall interrupted. “You can save this argument for later.”

Harry tried to object but a hand on his shoulder brought him up short. Hermione shook her head minutely. 

“We’re here to ask you whether anyone has seen anything suspicious and we’d like to get started. It’s already quite late.”

So, Slughorn and McGonagall took their statements, but neither Harry, Ron, Hermione, Seamus, Dean nor Neville could think of anything. 

Had he really been so wrapped up in peace lately that something like this had slipped by him completely? Harry wanted to punch something, hard. Or preferably someone. The someone who had destroyed Draco’s bed. 

“Have you been able to restore the bed?” Hermione asked when they had finished. 

Slughorn shook his head. “No. Not yet. Professor Flitwick will probably sort it out tomorrow.”

“Where will I sleep?” Draco was still avoiding eye contact with Harry and it was maddening. 

“There are guest quarters in the dungeons,” McGonagall explained. “Professor Slughorn will accompany you back to your dorm to gather the things you need and show you to the room.”

Draco nodded and turned to leave with Slughorn, not looking back. 

When they had disappeared through the whole, the headmistress addressed Harry. 

“Mr Potter, I don’t have to point out that anyone willing to break into the Slytherin dorm will not refrain from graver actions. You need to be vigilant.”

“I will, Professor.”

“For your own safety as well.” The confusion must have shown on his face for the witch elaborated. “The writing on Mr Malfoy’s wall warned him to stay away from ‘him’, which I suspect to be referring to you. You seem to have a rather adamant admirer, Mr Potter.”

Why hadn’t Draco said anything? The situation was becoming more dramatic by the second. 

He didn’t trust his voice, so he nodded and McGonagall wished them a good night and promised that the school would make every effort to find the ones responsible. 

Then, there was silence. 

“This is bad, mate.” 

“A crazed secret admirer? That’s just evil!” Seamus shouted and Dean agreed vehemently. 

“What now, Harry?” Neville looked at him expectantly. 

Harry’s head was spinning and all he wanted was to talk to Draco, hug him and make everything better. 

“I don’t know. I have to talk to Draco first.” He hurried up the stairs to his dorm, the others at his heels. 

Hermione was the first one to make the connection when Harry pulled his cloak out of his trunk. 

“You mean now?”

“Of course.” 

Hermione didn’t try to stop him. 

XXX

Draco hardly had a moment to breathe after Slughorn left him in the – admittedly cosy – guest quarters when he heard a knock. 

“Come in.” He knew whom to expect even before the door opened and the Boy Who Lived To Never Take A Hint entered, cloak in his hands. 

“Hi.”

“Hi.” 

Of course Harry had gone after him. It was so typical that Draco found it hard to be angry. 

Silence stretched between them but he didn’t want to be the one to break it. If Harry wanted to talk, he could also start. 

“I’d really like to hug you right now, Draco, but I can’t tell if you’d like that.”

“I don’t need to be coddled right now,” he snapped despite the ache in his heart that told him to seek proximity. 

“I’d never coddle you!” 

“Then don’t try to!”

*

They had never screamed at each other before, Harry noted belatedly. Was this their first fight? How had that happened?

Draco was breathing hard, he was obviously angry but at what or whom, Harry couldn’t determine. 

And neither could he determine what to say next. He wanted answers; he wanted to understand why Draco would keep the harassment from him and how he could help to make it all better. 

The Slytherin, however, was uncooperative. 

Harry took a steadying breath before he spoke next. “What can I say that won’t make you angry at me?”

The question took Draco by surprise. Harry guessed his boyfriend would have expected something accusatory like “Why didn’t you tell me”, but Harry could see Draco didn’t want to talk about it, no matter how curious he was. 

“Just don’t ask me why I didn’t tell you. I already said I didn’t want you to worry and take action. Just accept that and stop wondering.”

Draco’s body was tense; his jaw twitched like it had done only on very few occasions before. 

Harry considered the blond for a moment. Why? He desperately wanted to ask the question but couldn’t. 

Very well then. 

“Alright,” he said. “I won’t ask you again.”

Grey eyes narrowed – Draco was clearly struggling to believe Harry’s concession. When he saw that Harry meant it, he let out a sigh. 

“Good.”

Harry felt it safe to approach. Two steps from the Slytherin, he stopped, but Draco closed the gap between them and crushed their lips together in a desperate, violent kiss. 

They drew back, breath ragged, and Draco rested his forehead against Harry’s. 

“Whoever did this is after you, Harry.” It was barely more than a whisper. 

“I know. McGonagall told me. Do you have any idea who it could be?”

He felt Draco shake his head. “You?”

“Nope. But we’ll find him.”

“Or her.”

At that, Harry made a strangling noise which elicited a light chuckle from his boyfriend. 

Draco leaned back, eyes sincere. “Stay with me tonight?”

Harry answered with a smile and a kiss. 

XXX

The next day yielded no results. Flitwick had managed to turn his bed back to normal, Draco told them at lunch, and it wasn’t even dark magic, just a strong spell only time could help undo. 

Harry stayed vigilant and couldn’t help thinking of Mad-Eye, yet he didn’t see anything suspicious. Neither did Draco, Ron, Hermione nor one of their classmates for that matter. 

That evening brought news of a different kind, however. 

“Mate, there’s an owl outside,” Ron said and pointed towards one of the windows where Harry saw a Ministry bird. 

He let the animal in, exchanged the last crumbs of owl snacks he found in his pockets against the letter and the eagle owl took off again. 

Harry recognized Kingsley’s handwriting immediately. He motioned towards the other three and they huddled together, far away enough from the other Gryffindors. 

“Dear Harry,” he read after casting _Muffliato_ , “I have to admit that I wasn’t surprised upon receiving your letter. I can’t tell you much, which is due to the fact that the Ministry itself doesn’t have too much information at the moment. The mounting numbers of werewolves are alarming in that they suggest the existence of someone who might actively seek to increase the population. There’s no official statement yet - however, I personally believe Greyback’s involvement highly likely.”

“That bloody wolf,” Draco snapped, more at the paper than at anyone else. 

“I’m sure I don’t have to warn you not to spread your suspicions – people might panic easily in times like ours. Be vigilant instead! Give my wishes to Miss Granger, Mr Weasley and Mr Malfoy.”

Harry put the parchment down with a sigh. 

“Bloody brilliant, mate. First You-Know-Who’s Second Coming and now werewolves!” Ron complained, though Harry found himself not the slightest bit angry. 

Worried? Yes. Angry? No. It felt almost like the universe had re-established a balance: The balance that forbade Harry to lead an uneventful life; be happy with the way things were going and with no imminent threat hanging over his head. 

Harry mused whether this should worry him more than Greyback’s apparent recruiting sprees. 

XXX

January melted into a warm February. Harry’s admirer was just as elusive as Greyback, as updates from Kingsley had informed them. They’d have to wait for the next full-moon.

Harry was glad for the brief pause for Hermione and Draco had decided to start revising for N.E.W.T.s - to Ron’s and Harry’s utter horror. 

“But the exams are in June!” Ron would remind everyone three times a day which left their studious partners unfazed. 

“Yes, and they will have a major impact on your academic future, Ronald,” Hermione would reply every time. 

“Draco, you know all this already. Why could you possibly need to revise?” Harry would complain late at night in the library and he realised that he and Draco– again – wouldn’t have time to meet in the Room of Requirement. 

“Harry, as much as I appreciate your eagerness in other fields,” Draco sneered with a wink, “I do take my exams seriously. And you should, too.”

“I do, I do, but…. They’re in June!” Draco didn’t respond and Harry groaned in agony. “Why are we doing this? We only need Es, not Os!”

Draco put his quill down and met his gaze straight on. His features showed determination and perhaps a bit of annoyance – which Harry undoubtedly had put there. 

“Harry, my aim is a straight O average. I’ll take that medallion that says ‘Best of the Class of 1999’ and if it’s the last thing that I do.”

“What?” Hermione stared, Arithmancy book forgotten in front of her. 

Now, Harry was curious – he had never heard of Draco’s ambition before. Then again, when thinking back, Draco had always competed with Hermione for first place save for his sixth year. 

“Is that so surprising, Hermione?” Draco drawled. 

“You’ve never beaten me.”

“That won’t stop me from trying and succeeding this time.”

“You won’t!”

Harry and Ron exchanged worried glances and sank into their chairs, trying to blend in with the furniture. 

“Watch me.”

“Oh no, mister! That medallion had my name on it since first year and I will not let you take it from me!” She turned to her fiancé. “Ron, we’re adding another hour of revising on Sunday.”

“Wha- hang on, why do I have to do more as well?” 

“Because I see no reason that says you don’t need it.”

“But what if I don’t want to?”

“You’ll have to live with it if you want to marry me.”

“What?!”

“Hermione, don’t you think you’re overreacting? It’s just a medallion?” Harry threw in. After all, Hermione already had a very shiny Order of Merlin to call her own. Top of the Class of 1999 seemed to pale in comparison. 

“Overreacting? Just you boys wait until you receive your results and they show one or two As instead of all Es, and you’ll realise that I was right.” 

With that, she packed her things and stood up. “I’ll continue this in the Room of Requirement.” 

“Hermione-“

“No, Harry, if Draco wants to compete for the best degree, he should pay less attention to his libido and more to his school work.”

Harry watched her leave with an open mouth. Cockblocked? By Hermione? What was the world coming to?

Draco, on the other hand, turned the page of the book he was studying more fiercely and focused all his attention on the text. 

Ron gave him a pitying look. “Well, we’ve dug our own graves, haven’t we?”

With a groan that Draco pointedly ignored, Harry turned his attention back to his potions book.


	2. The Interview

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The time has come for Harry, Ron and Draco to have their interviews for a place in the Auror programme... Also, Draco has a plan.

Draco was pacing, up and down, up and down the corridor, unable to contain his nervousness. The sweaty palms were annoying but his churning stomach was simply torturous.

It was February, 27th and he was about to be called into the Auror office for his interview. 

It was a long application process: If the interview went well, Draco would have to complete two practical trials and then sit a written test which one couldn’t study for – not much, anyway. 

Gawain Robards, head of the Auror office, Griselda Marchbanks, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Kingsley Shacklebolt as well as David Savage, newly appointed head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, were a few doors away from Draco, interviewing whomever was alphabetically in front of him. 

Draco was loath to admit he dreaded the interview. His feigned nonchalance the week before was a defence mechanism to block out Ron’s constant worrying which, Draco was sure, would have driven him mad otherwise. 

Harry, on the other hand, seemed genuinely composed. His boyfriend had admitted to some anxiety last night in the Room of Requirement but mostly, his reasoning was that he had survived a Yule Ball, a Triwizard Tournament, puberty, a year in the wild and the Dark Lord (twice), so if he wasn’t able to handle the interview, he didn’t belong into the Auror office anyway. 

“Mr Malfoy, you’re up.” Robards’ assistant called from the door. 

Draco took one last, steadying breath and followed the witch through an empty room and through another door. 

The jury was seated around a round table on which applications lay scattered. Draco could hardly believe that the Minister actually stood up once he saw him and approached him. 

“Thank you, Miranda.” Kingsley dismissed the assistant and shook Draco’s – still sweaty, _don’t panic, don’t panic_ – hand. “Welcome, Mr Malfoy, nice to see you again.”

“Thank you, Minister. How are you?” Draco asked because no matter how jittery his nerves got, he always remembered etiquette.

“Fine, and happy that we’ve reached the letter M already,” Kingsley joked and, winking encouragingly, turned towards the table. 

Somewhat calmer, Draco followed the Minister and offered his hand to the only witch in the room. 

Griselda Marchbanks looked like a female Dumbledore, only older still. Yet her handshake was firm and Draco doubted he would stand a chance against the witch in a duel. 

“Mrs Marchbanks, hello.”

Marchbanks nodded and her lips actually curled into a smile. Thank Merlin for his Malfoy charms. 

“This is Mr Savage.” Kingsley presented the slightly podgy wizard. Everything from his posture to his attire screamed office worker. 

“My pleasure.”

“And this, as you probably know, is Gawain Robards, head of the Auror office and your potential boss.”

“It’s an honour, sir.” Draco said and hoped his handshake had been firm enough. The Auror’s face didn’t betray a hint of what was going through his head. 

He had seen Robards in the Prophet on more than one occasion, mostly related to Death Eater captures. In real life, he looked even more battle-worn than in the pictures – half of his right ear was missing and Draco could spot a scar that parted his short, dark hair on the left side of his skull. 

“Please, take a seat.” the Minister advised him. 

“Thank you.”

Robards cleared his throat. “Let’s begin; I’m sure you’re just as eager to get this over with as we are.”

“Yes, I imagine interviewing over a hundred applicants must be tiresome.”

“Indeed. So why don’t we turn the tables this time and you start by telling us a bit about yourself and why you’re here.”

Draco nodded. He knew this question was bound to come up. A Death Eater couldn’t simply apply like the rest of the candidates. Being the cunning Slytherin that he was, however, Draco had come prepared. 

“I’m quite sure that I must seem the unlikeliest candidate for Auror training at first glance, sirs and madam. And if you had suggested to me a few years ago that I’d be sitting here today, I would have resorted to some rather dark measures to prove you wrong. I don’t deny my past, I don’t deny that I’m wearing the Dark Mark,” Draco raised his left hand deliberately, “but I’m not the same person I was then. War changes people, as all of you surely know. I admit I was at a loss at first when I considered my future path in the Wizarding Community. I feared, quite frankly, that I’d never find a place anywhere, and my childhood ambitions of becoming an infamous Hit Wizard were long forgotten. But I realized that I might not be as wrong for the job as I thought.” Draco paused for effect and to steady his voice. The faces were unreadable, of course they were. Then, Kingsley gave him the hint of a smile. 

Good, so he wasn’t screwing this up. 

“I am a highly skilled wizard. I’ve mastered wandless magic to perfection, I am educated in Occlumency as well as Legillimency and I will be one of the top three students in my class at Hogwarts. And I have one thing no other applicant has, as far as I know: The Dark Mark and first-hand experience with dark wizards. I believe this would make me a strong addition to the Auror department.”

Kingsley’s smile hadn’t vanished and Draco felt, for the first time in days, carefully optimistic. He wasn’t lying, he was good and he did believe he would be an asset – he just hoped that Robards would agree.

The Auror nodded. “That is an interesting theory. Which sorts of dark magic have you encountered?”

Draco jumped into a brief tale of spells, incantations, potions and curses. The interviewers recognized all of them, Draco noticed, even Snape’s ability to fly which he had learned from the Dark Lord. 

“Knowing dark magic is a prerogative,” Marchbanks said, “but do you know how to counter it?”

Draco explained a few of the counter-curses and antidotes before he drew on the ace up his sleeve. “And I am very capable of using shield charms like _Protego Maxima_. I’ve attached a letter of recommendation from my Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher where Professor Williamson highlights my performance and especially mentions the one in our very first lesson.”

“Indeed, Williamson seemed quite taken with you,” Savage spoke for the first time. 

“Yes, and it takes much to impress him these days”, Kingsley added. 

The Minister was gradually becoming Draco’s new favourite person. 

“Very well, Mr Malfoy,” Robards said in a voice that told Draco he wasn’t off the hook yet. “I have one last question, merely out of personal interest.”

Draco tensed but forced his body to relax. The people in front of him could read applicants open books. 

“I gather you fixed a broken vanishing cabinet when you were sixteen. How did you manage that?”

Of all the questions, Draco hadn’t anticipated that. He threatened to splutter embarrassingly but caught himself in a matter of seconds. If the Auror wanted to know, Draco had to tell him. It had been difficult and had taken Draco’s magical abilities to stretch beyond his years and he had to resort to really dark magic. After all this time, and even though Draco regretted his role in the attack on Hogwarts and especially on Dumbledore, Draco couldn’t deny how proud he was of himself to have accomplished that task. 

By the end of his explanation, Robards seemed curiously impressed, Marchbanks seemed revolted, Kingsley nonchalant and Savage dubious. 

When nobody spoke, the Minister rose and gestured Draco to do the same. 

“That’s everything for today, Mr Malfoy.” 

“Thank you for your time,” Draco nodded at each person at the table and followed Kingsley to the door opposite the one he entered. 

The Minister closed the door behind them and genuinely smiled. “Congratulations, Mr Malfoy.”

“I take it that it wasn’t a complete disaster, then?” Draco dared. 

“Not at all. I’m glad you listened to my advice.” 

“I’m glad you gave it to me.”

Kingsley nodded and crossed the room until he reached another door. “I take it you want to wait for Harry and Ron?” Draco nodded. “Just stay here, they’ll join you eventually.”

“Thank you.” Kingsley opened the door but Draco addressed him once more. “Oh, Minister, just to warn you; Ron is extremely nervous. Even more so than I was.”

Kingsley chuckled. “No worries. I’ll go easy on him.”

XXX

Harry emerged a few applicants later, closed the door behind him and leaned back against it. Halfway through releasing a long breath, he noticed Draco sitting at a table, eyeing him. 

Harry smiled and crossed the room; tilted Draco’s chin up and brushed their lips together. The intimacy of it made Draco shudder. 

“Did the Chosen One dazzle the jury with his long history of foolish adventures?”

Harry chuckled. “I tried not to mention Voldemort. They wouldn’t let me get away so easily, though.”

“Come on, that interview is just for show anyway. You know you already have the job.”

Harry shrugged. “But I want to feel like I earned it.”

Stupid Harry: the Boy Who Lived To Be Self-Righteous. Harry sat down on the table and rested his feet on the sides of Draco’s chair. 

“How was your interview?”

Draco sighed. He had had a lot of time to analyse it. “I think it went alright. Kingsley accompanied me here and pointed out that I hadn’t blown my chance, so, yes, I think it wasn’t a complete disaster.”

“What kind of questions did they ask you?”

“A lot about the Dark Arts. What kind of spells I know, how I would defend myself against them.” His and Harry’s fingers intertwined. “And Robards wanted to know how I had fixed the vanishing cabinet in sixth year.” Harry looked up sharply. “I assure you, Chosen One, he was quite impressed.”

They shared a laugh and started to wait for Ron. In the meantime they took utter pleasure, or rather; Draco took utter pleasure, in seeing applicants’ faces blush various shades of red when they encountered Harry Potter and his lover in such an intimate position. 

Eventually, the door opened again and Draco saw a mop of familiar red hair. 

Harry and he jumped up and hurried over to where Ron had sunk to the floor, his back against the wall. 

“Ron, what is it? What happened?”

The Wesley didn’t answer for a moment. Draco studied his face – yes, it was slightly green but there were no more worry lines than there had been all of last week. Draco felt an odd rush of relief. 

“It was good,” Ron finally produced. 

“That’s brilliant!” Harry practically cheered. “Come on, let’s sit down and you tell us all about it!”

Ron nodded and stumbled to his feet. 

“I was so nervous, honestly, mates, I thought I was going to be sick in that waiting room. But then Kingsley greeted me and introduced me and you know; he has this calming aura, sort of?” Ron took another deep breath and some of the colour seemed to return to his cheeks. “They asked why I wanted to be an Auror and why I thought I was qualified and, Harry, I’m really sorry, well, a bit anyway, but I used you.”

“You used me?” 

“Well, all the cool stuff I’ve ever done was because of you, so I told them that I had this friend who always got into trouble and that as his best friend, I always followed him and got quite a lot of practice at concealing charms, safety spells and so on, only I hope I was more eloquent than now…” Ron shook his head. “But they seemed to like it! And Robards basically interrogated me on hunting Horcruxes and opening the Chamber of Secrets and stuff…. I really think they were a bit impressed!”

“Well, they better be,” Draco said and delighted in the way Ron’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. 

“Thanks mate! How was yours?”

Draco gave his summary and the three of them decided to make full use of their allowed leave from school. 

After strolling around for a while, they ended up in a restaurant in Muggle London. “My treat,” Harry said when he suggested getting something to eat. 

Sitting there with Harry and Ron, Draco could already picture the three of them, training to be Aurors and being generally brilliant. 

His future had never seemed so bright. 

XXX 

A few nights later, just after Ron’s birthday, Draco kidnapped Harry and took him to one of Hogwarts’ smaller towers. 

“Is this the part where you kill me?” Harry asked in feigned fear as Draco stopped at the bottom of the staircase that led up to the roof. 

“Believe me, I could think of smarter ways to kill you than in the middle of our school. I just want to show you something.”

He took Harry’s hand and pulled the man after him. 

Draco hadn’t underestimated the effect that tonight’s full moon had on the view. They could see the lake from this tower, reflecting the stars above it. Far away, the Forbidden Forest looked intimidatingly dark, trees moving when a breeze caught them. Next to them, the towers of Hogwarts stood in all their ancient beauty. 

“Amazing,” Harry breathed out. “How did you find this spot?”

“During sixth year I’d come here to think.” 

They settled onto the tiles, huddled close together. 

“What, Malfoy, is this not too romantic for you?” Harry attempted to sneer but in Draco’s eyes it still looked rather endearing than anything else. 

“Don’t worry; I have a plan to leave no doubt about how unromantic this actually is.”

“Really?” Harry raised his eyebrows. 

Draco shifted, climbing over Harry’s legs and straddled his hips. He set a leisurely pace and felt Harry’s cock respond immediately. 

The Boy Who Lived To Cause Him Orgasms gasped. “Only you would turn a romantic night at full moon into a shag.”

Draco leaned forward and captured Harry’s bottom lip between his and sucked hard. Harry’s lips parted and he surged forward, almost sitting up now, claiming Draco’s mouth. His hands found their way under Draco’s shirt and he shivered at the touch of skin to skin. His hips stuttered for a brief moment. 

Harry abandoned his mouth and moved down to his neck, biting Draco’s collar bone and the sensation went right to his groin. He couldn’t hold back a groan and sped up, shifting slightly in Harry’s lap to adjust the angle. 

Harry’s hand came round his back and stoked down his spine until it reached the rim of his trousers. Draco’s breath hitched as Harry slid his hand further down, a finger ghosting over his perineum. 

“Fuck, Harry,” Draco shouted and Harry all but growled. 

“I want to try something, Draco,” Harry murmured in his ear, breath hot against his neck. All he could do was nod and be glad for the concealment charm he’d cast as Harry turned him around so that Draco was resting on his stomach. 

With a swirl of his wand, Draco’s clothes were gone and the cold night air hit him. 

“Do you want me to freeze to death?”

“Sorry, hold on!” A noise told him that Harry was rummaging through his pockets and a second later, he heard the crack of a friendly fire and the air heated immediately. 

“Now, Potter, proceed,” he whined, only too aware that his hard-on was pressing against the roof of the tower. 

“Don’t worry,” Harry said and Draco could hear his smirk. 

His partner bent over Draco and ran his hands up his flanks, and a full-body shiver cursed through Draco. Harry had shed his clothes as well and the press of his chest against his back felt so incredibly good….

Draco gasped when he felt Harry’s tongue against his skin. The man traced Draco’s spine, licking and kissing, his hands ghosting over the sensitive skin just beneath Draco’s ribs. 

Lower and lower Harry’s tongue travelled until, teasingly slow, it slid between Draco’s cheeks. The wet tip circled his perineum, promising so much but not yet entering and Harry kept it up so long that Draco whined against the arm his head was resting on. 

He could feel Harry’s smile but the Boy Who Lived spread his cheeks and slipped his tongue into Draco, twisted it, pulled it out and pushed back in. It didn’t take long until Draco was pushing back in raw need for more, more of Harry inside him. Harry pulled out but then his lips were back, sucking and for a moment, Draco saw white. 

“Harry!” 

The man in question chuckled against his arse before his lips were back, taking turns with the tongue to torment Draco, who could feel a known tightness in his groin and was suddenly aware of the sounds he was making, gasping and cursing and moaning around Harry’s tongue and of the moonlight and of Harry’s fingernails digging into his hips and with a purely animalistic moan, he came, seeing stars. 

It was one of the most intense orgasms he had ever had. 

When his brain was able to process his environment again, Draco’s eyes fell on Harry who was sitting close by, watching him with dark eyes, pupils blown, right hand slowly moving up and down his cock. 

With a growl Draco crawled over to his partner and pushed his hand away. Harry raised his eyebrows in question but Draco merely put his hands on Harry’s shoulders and eased him to the ground. 

“I will ride you until you forget your own name,” he whispered in Harry’s ear. 

All Harry could do was breathe in sharply as Draco took Harry’s cock, lined himself up and lowered himself down slowly, antagonising slowly. Green eyes widened and then fluttered closed when he was sheathed in Draco. 

The sensation was incredible. Harry’s tongue had barely stretched Draco enough and it hurt, but it was the kind of pleasurable pain. Then, he started moving and Harry shuddered under him, and all pain was soon forgotten when Draco found the right angle and hit his prostate. 

He cried out and felt his cock fill again. He set a brutal rhythm that had his partner gasp and moan obscenely, pumping his own erection in rhythm with his hips moving up and down. 

The sweat on Harry’s skin shone in the moon light form above and Draco wondered how his come would look on Harry’s chest as the man under him began to jerk up, unable to restrain himself anymore. 

It didn’t take long and Draco came for the second time that night, shooting all over Harry’s chest, semen almost glowing in the light and mere seconds later, he felt the orgasm rip through Harry like a storm, Draco’s name on his lips.

Draco collapsed in a bundle of boneless flesh. Showing Harry this place had been a very good idea indeed.

XXX

Back in his dorm, Draco collapsed onto his bed and promptly fell asleep. 

Morning came much too quick and Draco skipped his morning run in favour of another hour of rest. When he finally managed to get in a vertical position, Blaise and Goyle had already left. 

Theodore was still fast asleep, which was rather unlike the man. 

“Theodore, wake up!” Draco called through the curtains when he re-emerged after his shower and his classmate still hadn’t moved. 

A huffed sound told Draco that the man at least was alive. 

“You really should get up or you’ll miss not only breakfast but also classes!”

“Alright, I’m up…” came the Slytherin’s murmured reply. 

“See you in the Great Hall,” Draco called as he left. 

Once at breakfast, Draco delighted in the knowledge that Harry looked equally sleep-deprived. They shared a heated look across the Great Hall and, with a smile, Draco turned to his Prophet. 

A few minutes later, Theodore slumped into the seat opposite him. Draco glanced up to nod in greeting, but froze mid-movement. 

Theodore had never looked worse – he was unbelievably pale which made the shadows under his eyes appear even darker. 

“Are you alright?”

Theodore looked up and saw Draco staring at him. He shrugged the question off. 

“Are you sure? You don’t look very healthy.”

“I think I’m coming down with something, maybe.”

“Perhaps you should go and see Madam Pomfrey? I’ll cover for you in class.”

Theodore hesitated for a moment, considering Draco. Did he doubt Draco’s sincerity? 

“I guess you’re right….” Apparently not, then. 

“Of course I’m right,” Draco sneered and saw the ghost of a smile play around his classmate’s lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh, subtle forshadowing... :) I hope you enjoyed it! Feel free to comment, leave Kudos, the works :)


	3. Love's Labour Lost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry comes up with a plan to draw out Harry's secret admirer. The plan works perhaps a little too well...  
> Also: Auror trial, number one of two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title blatantly stolen from Shakespeare. Or Emergency Room :)

“Draco?”

“Hm?” The blond reluctantly looked up from his Ancient Runes essay. 

“I have a plan.”

“Does it involve actually doing your homework in a timely manner by any chance?”

Harry knew his boyfriend wouldn’t like being interrupted while fighting for his straight-O-average but this couldn’t wait. 

“Did you notice how this secret admirer has been lying low the past weeks?”

“And that’s a problem because…?”   
“We’re never going to catch him like this!”

Draco considered him, eyes sharp. “You want to draw him out.” 

Harry nodded. “It’s like this whole thing is looming over us and we have no idea when he’ll strike again. We should take control of the situation.”

“And how do you suggest we do that?”

At that, Harry smirked. “Oh, you’ll like that… It involves a lot of groping and kissing…..”

His boyfriend smiled back at him – it was on. 

XXX

The weeks following Ron’s birthday, Harry seized every opportunity to touch Draco, even if it only was at the elbow. They kissed frequently, at breakfast, lunch, dinner, between classes, but always chastely. 

When a week and a half went by without so much as a threatening note, Harry decided to up the stakes. 

And the detention he got them into for indecent behaviour outside a classroom was worth every second because the day after, the fact that Draco Malfoy had gone on his knees in front of Harry near the Transfiguration class room was all everyone was talking about. 

“I would have loved to see McGonagall’s face!” Ron managed to gasp between fits of laughter when they told him.

Hermione was less amused. “This is a ridiculous plan! All you got was detention!”

“The blow job was worth it,” Harry quipped and made Draco blush. More seriously, he added, “I think McGonagall might suspect something, though.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, she had this ‘I-see-right-through-you’ look she always wears when someone lies to her in class about why they haven’t completed their homework. Perhaps she can guess what we’re trying to do.”

“Even if – she gave us detention and the attention of the gossip mill, so mission accomplished,” Draco concluded as he stretched out on the sofa, his head resting in Harry’s lap. 

Harry’s plan was working, so to speak: The next day, Draco was shoved into a wall again. 

Draco hadn’t seen who it was but the fact that they had drawn the admirer out was good enough. 

They continued their public displays of affection to such an extent that Harry suspected they were developing a kink…. Snogging Draco senseless in the middle of the Entrance Hall shouldn’t be this arousing. 

Thank Merlin for concealing cloaks. 

XXX

Draco had been feeling uneasy all day. March was drawing to an end and the day before, Harry had practically devoured him in an alcove in the middle of the afternoon. 

Of course, someone had walked in on them and of course, that someone was a blabbermouth. 

Whispers followed him – apparently the newest theory was that Draco had put a sex spell on Harry and thus bound them together. 

He snorted at the thought. If anyone was the sex-crazed teenager, it was his partner. 

And if Draco also happened to thrive on the public attention when kissing in the middle of a crowd, well, there’s that. 

He was on his way to the Room of Requirement to meet with the trio for another session of spell practise. The first Auror trial was to be held at the end of March and Harry, Ron and he had been preparing like hell, hoping to dazzle-

-suddenly, Draco slammed into the wall. 

What the-?

He couldn’t move. He must have been hit with _Peltrificus Totalus_. Which meant he had been attacked-

At that moment, he caught a movement out of the corners of an eye. 

Presumably the swirling of a wand for Draco felt his body rise and hover towards the nearest classroom. 

The door opened and he felt magic ropes bind his wrist and feet. He could move again, but it was no use, he was confined, his wand stuck in in trouser pockets, out of reach.

Then his attacker finally stepped into his field of vision. 

Romilda Vane was glaring at him. 

“You?!” he spat. That girl? 

Then again, she had brewed a love potion for Harry once. 

“Yes, me. You’re a terrible pain in the arse, Malfoy.”

“Well, only in Harry’s, so that’s no concern of yours.”

It was the wrong thing to say – the witch raised her wand and sent a stinging hex his way. Which hurt like hell. 

“That’s the past now. Harry is mine!” Her eyes were dancing with a mad sort of passion and Draco wondered briefly if she had been bewitched to do this or if she actually was a bit barmy. 

“I doubt he feels the same about you, darling.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Malfoy. Once you’re dead he’ll need someone to console him. He won’t grieve for long.”

“Wait, you want to kill me?” For a second he considered the unlikely fact that she’d succeed. Killed by a love-crazed teenager. That was no honourable way for a Malfoy to die. It was downright embarrassing. 

“Yes. You’ve proven to be quite the obstacle alive.”

Her calm voice chilled Draco to the bone. Whether cursed or crazy, Romilda Vane meant what she was saying. 

Which meant that Draco had to get out of these ropes. Thankfully he hadn’t been trained by Death Eaters for nothing. 

“Why do you like Harry?” he asked as a diversion. 

He was only half-listening to Romilda’s tirade about Harry’s eyes and hair and courage and flying capabilities. Instead, all his attention focused on a bit of incredibly complicated and slightly dark magic which he had never performed wandlessly. 

The ropes receded with a snap that shook the girl out of her rambling but Draco was prepared for the curse that flew his way. Wand in hand, he shielded it without difficulty, then sent curse after curse Romilda’s way but her Protego was strong. 

It was more instinct than thought. No normal curse would break through Romilda’s shield and Draco pulled his arm back in a whip-like motion. 

The dark magic of the _Pestis Animae_ ripped the girl’s shield apart and threw her on her back, gasping for breath. He disarmed her and sent stronger ropes her way. When she had regained her breath, she couldn’t escape for she had no clue as to how dark the magic would have had to be for her to break her constraints. 

“What are you doing to me!” she shrieked but Draco paid her no heed. 

Instead, he sent out two silver ferrets and waited, belatedly realizing exactly which curse he’d used to incapacitate Romilda. Bloody Hell. 

It didn’t take long. Three minutes later, the trio barged into the classroom, followed swiftly by the headmistress. 

Draco patiently explained how Romilda had attacked him and how he had escaped. The girl was silent.

“What spell did you use to incapacitate her?”

Draco blanched. “Erm, _Pestis Animae_ …” he mumbled but McGonagall’s hearing was impeccable. 

“Mr Malfoy!”

“I didn’t have time to think! Her shield was so strong, it was either use something strong or risk losing!”

“And the first spell that came to your mind was one of the darkest spells in existence?”

He shrugged helplessly. 

“Professor, I’m sure Draco would never use such a spell if not absolutely necessary,” Hermione of all people cut in. 

The headmistress was as speechless as Draco. 

“I’ve been at the receiving end of the spell myself, Professor,” Harry added, “and it doesn’t leave any damage, it only hurts and takes your breath away for a moment.”

The witch considered them for a minute. The fact that Romilda was fit to glare daggers at Draco seemed to mollify her somewhat. “Alright, I will let I slide – for now! We have to inform the Ministry and figure out how to deal with Miss Vane here.”

Draco huffed in relief. Half an hour later they found them in McGonagall’s office, talking to Kingsley. The Minister’s eyes widened when the headmistress told him what had happened, but it was only after Romilda was taken into custody that he addressed Draco. 

“Mr Malfoy, am I correct in the assumption that you wandlessly escaped her confines?”

Draco nodded and schooled his face to hide how proud he was at himself for accomplishing that bit of magic. 

“And that you then tried to incapacitate Miss Vane, but to no avail until you resorted to _Pestis Animae_?”

“Yes, Minister, I swear, I tried every spell I knew but at some point, my instincts kicked in and I had cast the spell. Nothing short of the Unforgivables would have worked, I swear. It was my last resort. I would never use the spell lightly.” Draco lowered his eyes and added, hesitantly, “I know how it feels to be at the receiving end and it’s quite close to the Cruciatus Curse.”

Kingsley considered him for a long while. Undoubtedly the Minister tried to figure out who had cast such a spell on Draco, but Draco would not stoop to the level where he’d accuse his own father just so the Minister would go easy on him. 

“I believe you,” Kingsley finally spoke. 

McGonagall still seemed dubious but didn’t contradict the Minister. 

“As to Miss Vane,” Kingsley said, turning to the headmistress. “I have already sent for a healer of St. Mungo’s who will determine her mental state and she will be tried accordingly for attempted murder. If there is any news, I will contact you, Minerva.”

She nodded briefly and the Minister stepped into the fireplace. 

After he had gone, she faced the four of them. “I need you to remain quiet on the matter. I am glad we’ve solved the situation but for both your and Miss Vane’s privacy, I’d appreciate this incident would not be pulled through every step of the student’s rumour mill.”

They all nodded sincerely and McGonagall sent them back to their studies. 

XXX

Even with one less worry on their minds, it was impossible for the four of them to relax. Romilda Vane might have indeed been declared mentally insane and had taken up residence at St. Mungo’s closed ward, yet they still only had a few days until the Auror trial. Hermione sacrificed precious study time to construct scenarios like Williamson had before the holidays. 

Every night for an hour or two, Harry, Ron and Draco would run around the Room of Requirement until they were sweaty and exhausted or practise difficult spell as well as team manoeuvres. 

Two days before the 27th, Hermione clapped after the three of them had survived a particularly gruesome course. Draco was sure they had all noticed how good they had become. 

“Really, if they don’t take you on the spot, I don’t know who better suited they could wish for!” 

The three of them blushed faintly and Ron immediately pulled his fiancé into a deep kiss. 

Back in the common room, Ron’s and Draco’s much anticipated final match of chess was interrupted by a Ministry owl but Ron insisted on finishing the game before reading Kingsley’s update. 

Draco lost and had no one to blame but his unconcentrated self. He was still ahead of Ron in their statistic (which favoured Draco with 122:109), so he didn’t beat himself up about it – unlike a few of Ron’s classmates who had bet the Slytherin would win. 

Harry cast _Muffliato_ around them as they huddled around the letter. 

“Dear Harry, last month’s moon saw another wave of purposeful werewolves attacks. Greyback has been spotted by our Hit Wizards but managed to escape, though we now can say for certain that he is involved. We fear his agenda is to breed so many wolves that their numbers will surpass those of humans, if he still holds onto his plans from during the war. As always, be vigilant.”

They exchanged grim looks. 

“This isn’t good,” Harry said as he destroyed the letter. 

“Can we do anything?” Ron wondered and looked at Draco. “Do you know any of the circles he runs in?”

Draco shook his head in disgust. “No, we never associated with Greyback. He was always an occupational hazard and sometimes really practical as a threat... but I might have another lead,” he admitted tentatively. 

He had a suspicion which he hadn’t yet voiced since he didn’t have enough evidence to support it, though he had a feeling he wasn’t far off. 

“What?”

“Alright, you probably don’t remember Theodore Nott from before the war, do you? He’s in my year in Slytherin,” he added when he saw their confused faces. 

“Darkly….” Hermione said, screwing her face up in concentration. 

“Anyway, he used to be a bit podgy but when I saw him for the first time this year, he was almost painfully skinny. At first I thought it was because his father had been sent to Azkaban, but when he returned from the holidays it was even worse. Then, after this month’s full moon, he was absolutely whacked and even took my advice about going to Madam Pomfrey. That bloke would even go to lessons with dragon pox!”

“So you’re saying that Nott might be a werewolf?” Harry asked, incredulous. 

Draco nodded. “I’m pretty sure, but I’ll wait until after the next moon to confront him.”

“Do you suppose it was Greyback who did it to him?”

“Might be. He knew Nott’s father and where they lived and Greyback always had a preference for younger victims.” He shuddered at some of the memories. 

“Good, then we are actually doing something about this!” Ron cheered and they all chuckled bitterly. 

XXX

By Saturday, Draco was almost eager to complete the trial. The night before, the three of them had practised one last time and they had gone to bed very satisfied with themselves (well, the orgasms Draco bestowed on Harry and himself surely helped matters, too). 

“Welcome,” Robards greeted the 60 applicants that had remained. “Several tasks await you today: we will test team work as well as individual capabilities. Each of you will have a trace put upon you which will help us monitor your actions and interactions throughout the tasks. This time, you will be allowed to pick your team yourself. Your first task it to find yourselves in groups of three,” Draco inwardly jumped in joy and he saw the emotion mirrored on Harry’s and Ron’s faces, “and contact one of our assistants for your traces.”

“Brilliant!” Ron took a step towards them so that everyone could see they had already formed a team. “We’ll be unstoppable!”

“Definitely,” Harry conceded and Draco merely grinned. 

After receiving their traces which also were tuned in with his teammates, they cued. There were three doors after which the same tasks awaited each group, according to the assistant. 

The three of them paused before the first door and exchanged a look. 

“Constant vigilance,” Harry said solemnly and both Ron and Draco nodded as Harry turned the door knob. 

Hermione and the Room of Requirement had come close to the scenario that presented itself to them. An obstacle course filled with traps, charms, disguises, diversions and glamours. 

After escaping a group of pursuers by erecting an honest-to-Merlin wall between them and the others, they found themselves face to face with an Erkling. 

Draco recognised it from the bestiary Hagrid had had them buy and read. It was an elfish creature but larger than a gnome and with a pointed face. It cackled constantly which was supposed to be enticing for children which the creature would then eat. 

Apparently, they were looking like dinner as well. 

They dodged attacks and fired curses but the little thing was way too fast for them. 

“I have an idea,” Ron bellowed over another cackle. “I let it attack me and you take the chance and kill the bloody thing!”

“We shouldn’t use the same curses though, we don’t know what will incapacitate it,” Harry pointed out. 

“Alright, you stupefy the wanker and I will bind it,” Draco suggested while he was busy shielding himself against another Erkling attack. 

“Get ready,” Ron warned and Draco mused that the Weasley took way too much pleasure in sacrificing himself. 

When the Erkling jumped at Ron, he used his arm to shield his face and the creature sank its teeth into the flesh. Ron cried in pain at the same time that Harry shouted “ _Stupefy_!” and Draco “ _Incarcerous_!”. 

Both curses hit their target and the beast fell to the ground, unconscious and bound tight. 

“That bloody hurt,” Ron complained and used his sleeve to stop the bleeding. 

“Let me.” Draco slapped Ron’s hands away and used one of the more powerful healing charms Snape had taught him. The wound closed and the skin knitted itself together again – it looked as though the Erkling had never bitten Ron. 

“Thanks, mate!” 

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

“Guys, there’s a door,” Harry’s voice came from above them. He was right: Suspended in the thin air stood a wooden door. “I’ll open it and peer in.”

They jumped to their feet and hurried after Harry but apparently, they had reached the end of their task and found themselves in another plain room equipped with one assistant. 

“Welcome to part two,” the woman said pleasantly as if they just hadn’t had to deal with hell in the previous room. 

Part two was almost boring after the thrill of the course. It was a firing range and they had to aim different curses (which appeared in magic letters in the air in front of them before the target began to move) at different targets, stationary as well as moving. 

Draco recognised every spell and had to laugh so hard at “ _Expelliarmus_ ” that he almost missed his target. Almost. 

After that, the three of them advanced to the final room where they had to wait a little until the jury had sorted through the magically compiled data and ask them to join them. 

It was Kingsley who opened the door. 

“Ah, I figured that it was the three of you,” he said matter-of-factly but Harry, Ron and Draco exchanged brief smiles anyway. 

It was a short talk, the only time Robards seemed to actively doubt them was when he stated that Ron had been bitten by the Erkling. After they had explained how they had found it the best strategy to incapacitate the beast, Robards’ faith in them was apparently restored. 

“Usually you’d have to wait for your confirmation letters,” Kingsley said when he accompanied them out of the room, “but I take it you already know that I’ll be seeing you next month.”

They beamed. 

“Thank you, Kingsley,” Harry replied for the three of them. “And good luck at the next full moon!”

The Minister’s face fell. “Don’t remind me…..” 

And somehow those three words worried Draco more than all the articles about the attacks combined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter :) I had a lot of fun writing is, especially the trial. Let me know what you think!
> 
> By the way, as of three days ago, the entire series, meaning all six parts, are finished! Which means I can immediately start start posting part IV after chapter 7 of Seven Days To The Wolves :) Thanks to vernie_klein for recent cheerleading and merlenhiver for suffering through six years of me writing this!


	4. Theodore's Tale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry, Draco, Ron and Hermione confront Theodore Nott. The second Auror trial is approaching while Fenrir Greyback is waiting for the best moment to make an appearance....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gosh, I'm so happy I can post today! I'm visiting my folks and the wifi din't want to let me in with my new Mac. But hey, 24 hours later and I'm online, just in time for updating :)
> 
> Thanks again to my wonderful beta vernie_klein! Don't know what I'd do without you!

On the night of April, 1st, Theodore Nott was nowhere to be found. Draco looked in the library, in the Slytherin common room, in their dorm but it yielded no results. 

A look at the Marauders’ Map showed that Theodore was currently in a room near the hospital wing. 

“Do you think Madam Pomfrey supervises his transformations?” Harry wondered. 

“Did she do that with Lupin as well?” Draco asked. 

“No, Professor Snape brewed him Wolfsbane and he could curl up in his room.” Draco remembered what Harry had told them about the year Lupin had taught at Hogwarts and the complications on the night of Buckbeak’s execution. 

“I think it’s safe to assume that he taught Madam Pomfrey how to prepare it and that Nott is under supervision for the night despite the potion,” Hermione offered and they nodded. 

“I’ll talk to him tomorrow or the day after if he is well enough,” Draco decided and they closed the map again. 

XXX

Theodore was absolutely whacked the next morning. Not nearly as badly as the month before, but he still looked positively ill, so Draco postponed his intervention in favour of the next day. 

He knew that Theodore avoided the library on Friday nights and often used an empty classroom or a sitting area on the third floor instead. Draco knocked and waited for a surprised “Come in” before he entered. 

“Draco?” His fellow Slytherin put down his quill and parchment in wonder. 

“Hi Theodore. I wondered if I could have a word with you?”

“What about?” The man stood up and Draco recognised the flight instinct about to take over his class mate.

“There’s no way to ease into this….. but it’s really important that you’re honest with me.”

“Alright….?” Theodore’s body was tense - he had to suspect what was about to come. No use wasting time with diplomacy, then. 

“I’ve noticed you’re always worse for wear after the full moon. My theory is that you’re a werewolf. Am I right?” Brown eyes widened in horror and it was enough to prove Draco right – but he needed more details. “I am, am I not?”

Slowly, Theodore nodded, face pale. “Are you going to tell anyone?” he croaked. 

“Not the way you think.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Alright, I guess it’s time to come clean as to why I am prying into your life which I actually have no right to,” Draco answered diplomatically. “Did you read the articles in the Prophet about the mounting numbers in the werewolf population?” Theodore shrugged so Draco continued. “Harry and the others suspect it has something to do with Fenrir Greyback,” Theodore’s wince at the name didn’t pass unnoticed, “and Harry wrote to Kingsley and he thinks so, too. The theory is that Greyback is recruiting for a werewolf-human war and we are desperate for information. Can you tell us anything, anything at all?”

The man stared at him for a long moment until he snapped, “Why should I help you?”

“Why not? Your secret’s safe and with Harry Potter guarding your back, you’re immensely safer than on your own.”

The Slytherin fell silent for a while. When he looked up again, Draco thought he saw a glimpse of hope. “I do know about that, that plan. For war, I mean. But I can’t simply tell you, I need to know that he can’t harm me or my mother.”

Draco sighed in relief. “Oh, I’m sure Harry can convince Kingsley to station a few Aurors at your mother’s house and while at Hogwarts, you’re safe anyway, with the Boy Who Lived Again and his sidekicks at your service.”

Theodore took a deep breath and nodded. 

Draco convinced him to tell them the whole story and they went up to the seventh floor and joined the trio in the Room of Requirement. 

“Well, Theodore, these are our resident celebrities, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and the soon-to-be Mrs Granger-Weasley,” Draco introduced them and everyone exchanged insecure “Hi”s. 

“We were right – Theodore is indeed a werewolf and he has information on Greyback’s plans, but he wants protection for his mother and himself in exchange.”   
“Of course,” Harry confirmed immediately. “I’m a hundred per cent certain that Kingsley will dispatch Aurors to protect your family.”

Draco admired the authority that always seemed to come so natural to Harry when he was being all heroic and Theodore felt it too, apparently. 

“Alright… So you want to hear my story?”

“Yes, if you’d like to tell us?” Hermione conjured two chairs and Theodore and Draco sat down. 

“Where should I start?”

“When were you turned?”

Theodore nodded and took a steadying breath. “It was during summer, at the beginning of July. I was walking home from a friend, a Muggle friend, so I didn’t have my wand with me…. I didn’t see him coming, he jumped me from behind and bit me and I remember little of the night. I managed to get home and my Mum took me to St. Mungo’s immediately. They contacted the Ministry and Professor McGonagall. I was registered and McGonagall consulted with Madam Pomfrey. They arranged for Wolfsbane Potion and my own room for moon nights. I spent my first moon in the Ministry.” Theodore shuddered at the memory. “The week after, Greyback visited me at night when my mother was out. He told me he was my sire and that he would come to collect what I owed him soon. And no Wolfsbane could safe me from my destiny, he said. It was… scary. He told me of his vision… A world governed by wolves where humans were a minority and enslaved. He seems to believe that werewolves are superior to wizards.” He looked up at them uncertainly. “That’s all I know.”

“Did he say when he would need you or what for?” 

The man shook his head. “And he hasn’t contacted me since.” 

“Thank you,” Harry said sincerely. “You were a great help!” 

Theodore shrugged. 

“Do you want to study here with us tonight?” Hermione asked. “Besides, if we write Kingsley right away, his answer might reach us tonight.”

Draco saw that Theodore’s first impulse was to decline. He had always been a loner but with his new “condition”, it seemed to have cemented further. 

Yet he hesitated. “I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

“Don’t worry, mate,” Ron assured him. “Draco wasn’t intruding the first time either and if you’re worried that we’re too loud… we’re not. Or we would be, if not for Hermione’s and Draco’s constant nagging. “

“I don’t nag!” Draco cried indignantly. 

“You do! ‘Scarface, Weasel, shut up this instant or Hermione and I will be withholding sex for a week!’” Harry imitated him, noting the colour rise in Theodore’s cheeks.

“That was one time-“

“And the threat kept us quiet ever since,” Ron laughed. “So, Theodore, what do you say?” 

The man shrugged, smiled briefly and pulled out his books again. Satisfied, Harry retrieved another scroll of parchment and started his letter. 

XXX

After that, everything happened rather quickly and Draco was glad that finally, the Ministry was becoming efficient when dealing with threats. 

Not half an hour after Harry had sent Helena to Kingsley, the Minister’s silver lynx summoned the four of them to McGonagall’s office where they also met Theodore’s mother. 

She was a tall, plump witch and the lines in her face reminded Draco strongly of his own mother’s. Then again, Mrs Nott was also the wife of a Death Eater.

Theodore told Kingsley what he had told the others, however the man was more nervous now that his cooperation with the Ministry was official. Kingsley’s promise that his mother would be put under constant supervision and protection calmed Theodore down somewhat. 

Draco accompanied his fellow Slytherin back to their dorm – it was late and Theodore still looked rather beat. 

“Thank you, Theodore,” Draco finally said when they were almost in front of the gargoyle.

The man didn’t respond but merely nodded. 

“And if you ever want to study with us again, you’re very welcome.”

And even if his classmate remained silent, Draco saw the ghost of a smile play around his lips.

XXX

Nott took Draco up on his offer and joined them from time to time. Harry didn’t mind, not exactly. But now Ron and he were outnumbered by overachieving students since Nott, as it turned out, was just as focused on his studies as Hermione. 

“I have to make up for my disability,” the Slytherin had explained when Harry had pointed it out. 

What had followed was a passionate speech about discrimination which Hermione wanted to fight against once she had started training in the Department for the Care and Control of Magical Creatures. As it turned out, Nott was nurturing the same ambition and Hermione had sworn right there that they would team up to fight for werewolf rights. 

Nott had seemed a little overwhelmed but Hermione’s little outburst at least ensured that he felt welcome in their midst. Which he was, honestly. 

Harry just missed his free time. For when they weren’t bent over essays for their teachers, they were practising for the second Auror trial. After the Erkling incident Draco had extended their preparation to include the field of magical beasts which added quite a lot to their already heavy work load. 

On the other hand Draco, Ron and Harry felt very confident when the trial weekend finally was upon them. 

Two days of tests and teamwork, evenings filled with homework they couldn’t simply let be (because their teachers were all nutters) turned out to be as exhausting as Harry had anticipated. 

The number of applicants had been cut in half again: Only 30 young witches and wizards from Great Britain as well as Europe, Russia and even America remained. 

The Ministry began testing each individually, sending them through a course that bore uncomfortable reminiscence to the maze of the Triwizard Tournament but that didn’t pose much difficulty after Hermione’s efficient training regime. 

After that, they were divided into teams and Harry found himself grouped with a witch from Beauxbatons and a posh bloke who had written “private school” all over him. Harry was glad he had concealed his scar and coloured his hair slightly. He didn’t want to be treated like the bloody Boy Who Lived Again but as the competition. 

It worked: The bloke was rude and assumed the leading role as they began their mission, which was to rescue a child from a kidnapper. It went rather well, Harry even saved the man’s skin somewhere in the midst of their rescue mission when the criminal revealed he had several accomplices. 

During lunch break, Draco and Ron had equally adventurous stories to tell. 

The afternoon was dominated by undercover work. Again, chance allotted them their second team partner and after shadowing a suspect with a Russian applicant, and retrieving evidence (illegally of course) with an American girl, luck was lenient and Harry found himself paired up with Draco for their final task. 

They were to uncover a smuggler ring, one of them posing as a fellow thug who had kidnapped the other and presented his victim to the alleged criminals as a source for Occamy eggs. 

They had twenty minutes to develop their strategy and then, they were sent into the fake meeting. Draco had changed his face and lengthened his hair while Harry had given himself a shorter haircut and transformed his scar into a rather ugly gash across half his face. 

“Potter, you look revolting.”

“Mission accomplished then. I want to look like a really bad guy.”

Draco chuckled and Harry magically bound Draco’s wrists. His boyfriend would pose as an aristocrat with a secret collection of Occamy eggs in his East wing. Once the smugglers had accepted their deal, they had to arrest them. 

Harry counted on Draco’s abilities to get out of the ropes wandlessly and they hoped not to be outnumbered. 

They were, four to two, as a matter of fact, but it didn’t pose much of a problem. Harry’s performance seemed to be convincing, as was Draco’s version of a panicked, posh wizard, and once the group’s boss had shaken hands with Harry on the deal, having confessed to several acts of smuggling, Draco and he acted with incredible swiftness. 

“I hereby arrest you for the distribution of class-A-non-tradable objects.” Harry resisted the urge to read them their rights, reminding himself that he was not a cop in an American television series. Instead, he let his concealment and altering charms fall away, as did Draco. 

One of the prisoners laughed out loud. 

“Fancy that, no wonder you two were so confident and quick about the arrest!”

Draco blushed in the most adorable shade of pink at the unexpected compliment and Harry winked. 

Day one had passed rather well. 

XXX

Day number two was even more demanding. Again, they were assigned partners and as a pair they were thrown into different situations they had to deal with. 

The exercise in improvisation was thrilling, Harry decided as he and a different Beauxbatons girl were trying to escape a swarm of strange bug-like beasts Harry had never encountered before. As it turned out, fire worked rather well against them. 

After lunch, it was time for individual improvisation and Harry had to find his way out of several complicated scenarios, including one involving a Bogart. 

To conclude the weekend, they were to divide into groups of three again for their final task. It was similar to what Draco, Ron and Harry had lived through in March but this time, they were getting closer to screwing up. 

According to Robards, the course would adjust to their abilities, increasing in difficulty. It was meant to defeat them, he had highlighted, the Auror office just wanted to see how far they could be pushed. 

So when they found themselves face to face with an Erumpent after half an hour, Harry felt his confidence rise. 

“We must be getting on their nerves if they send that thing our way,” Draco voiced Harry’s thoughts. 

“But it can’t be a real Erumpent, can it?” Ron sounded a little frightened. 

“Probably not, that would be too dangerous.” Draco took a few steps and peered around the beast which hadn’t yet noticed them. “It’s guarding a door.”

“It’s probably trained to let no one pass,” Harry mused. “So how do we get past it?” 

“You wouldn’t happen to have your Cloak with you, mate?”

“Sorry, I think that would be cheating.”

“We need a diversion,” Draco decided and Harry and Ron were quick to agree. 

“Would canaries work?”

“Probably too small.”

“A big dog?”

“Can we actually conjure anything bigger than canaries?”

Draco shook his head. “And there’s nothing to transfigure.”

“Wait, what about a Patronus? Would the Erumpent chase that?”

They exchanged glances. “Worth a try, mate. If it doesn’t work, we can always improvise.”

They moved to the right and Harry, having the largest Patronus, performed the charm and sent his stag at the Erumpent. 

It took notice but didn’t move. Harry nudged his Patronus on so that the stag lowered his horns and charged at the beast, then retreated into the opposite corner. 

To Harry’s surprise, it worked: The rhino charged at the stag and the three of them sped towards the door, opened it, jumped through and slammed it shut again. 

“Congratulations,” the witch who awaited them said. “You’re finished for today; I’ll revoke your traces.”

XXX

Draco couldn’t believe it. They had made it through the two practical Auror tests with flying colours if the invitations to the written exam on May, 22nd, were any indication. 

His elation was slightly muted by the fact that – even though you couldn’t learn for the test – it lay at the end of the week they were also taking their N.E.W.T.s. 

“Just what you need after five days of tests,” Ron complained on Friday afternoon while they were studying with Theodore, “another bloody test!”

“You can’t study for it anyway, Ronald, I don’t understand why you’re so upset.”

“My future is at stake, Hermione!”

“Ron, if they don’t take you, I don’t know who they’d want fighting Dark wizards!”

Draco snickered at Ron’s expression. So he had realised it was a compliment after all. 

Later that night, when he was lying in Harry’s arms, he couldn’t hold back his own worries, though. 

“I should really come up with a plan B.”

“What do you mean?” Harry asked absently while caressing Draco’s shoulder. 

“If I’m not accepted-“

“Don’t be daft, Malfoy. Kingsley practically told you they’d take you on the spot. Now shut up about it.”

With a sigh, he did and changed the subject. He had no idea what else he could do anyway. 

“Excited about Sunday?”

“What’s on Sun- oh, the Freedom Day.” Harry stilled behind him. “I can’t believe it’s already been a year.”

“Me neither.” Without him really wanting them to, Draco’s thoughts travelled back in time. The Battle of Hogwarts. The Room of Requirement. His trial, the Freedom Day Celebration. 

He didn’t say anything about any of it for he was sure Harry was thinking along the same lines. Instead, he shuffled a bit closer and was glad when The Boy Who Lived To Be His Blanket tightened his grip around him. 

 

XXX

Hogwarts had outdone itself – the Quidditch pitch had been transformed to hold the incredible amount of guests that had come and everywhere Harry, Draco, Ron and Hermione went, they saw buffet tables, additional vendors, and sitting arrangements. There were games for the children that made him regret that the Dursleys had never allowed him to go to the fairs in London. 

Spirits were high, Kinglsey’s official speech was short and everything considered it was a welcome break from studying (at least in Harry’s and Ron’s opinion). 

They shared a table with Neville and Luna, plates full of delicious things the house-elves had prepared and chatted about anything except their upcoming exams. 

Harry and Draco were sitting close together, with the Slytherin actually leaning against Harry comfortably. They had tried toning their PDAs down a bit after a bright flash had alerted them to the presence of a photographer, but that couldn’t change the fact that they were constantly touching. 

Neville and Luna weren’t as obvious about it, but Harry could see the way they were looking at each other. He’d never say it out loud but they truly were adorable. 

When Ron finished telling the story about their second Auror trial, Neville plunged into an excited tale regarding his plans for the future: He would become Professor Sprout’s understudy as well as Hogwarts’ next game keeper. 

“It will be brilliant!” Neville continued. “I already have plans to introduce new plants into the greenhouses, for example-“

But they never learned which type of weed their class mate wanted to grow since their table suddenly caught flames. 

They jumped back, drew their wands instinctively and spun around. The first screams sounded across the grounds and if the sun hadn’t been shining brightly, the dejà-vu would have been grimly perfect. 

Witches, wizards and children were running from a place to their right. Fires were blazing everywhere but the perpetrator was nowhere to be seen. 

Harry glanced at the others and they moved forward, wands raised, ready to defend themselves. When the last people had passed them by, Harry saw who had caused the trouble. 

There, in the middle of the day, stood Fenrir Greyback, flanked by about thirty other men and women, all in identical brown cloaks sporting a red symbol that looked like a turned-around ‘Z’. 

Greyback’s wand was raised, apparently to shield him from whatever curse the Minister had thrown at the wolf. 

Kingsley stood with most of the professors as well as a few students and adults to their left. The Minister’s eyes darted briefly to him, acknowledging his presence. 

He heard Draco draw in a shocked breath. There, at Greyback’s feet, lay a small child, barely six years old. It was bleeding. 

The wolf saw them and barred his teeth with a smile. They were red from the child’s blood. 

“There he is. Now the party is complete, Potter.” Greyback inclined his head. “And Draco, it’s good to see you. Last time you looked a bit scared there for a moment. Good old times. Don’t worry, they’ll return.”

“We know what you want,” Harry interrupted. “And there’s no way you’ll win a war against humans with thirty lousy men. Not against all of us.”

But Greyback only laughed in his face and Harry felt bile rise in his throat. 

“Our numbers are far greater and they will rise even more! We’re here to warn you. And to show you what we’re capable off.”

He bowed down towards the child and Harry couldn’t hold back any longer. Apparently, neither could his friends. 

Five rays of light shot towards Greyback who jumped out of harm’s way quickly. 

_Bloody werewolf reflexes_ , Harry thought in disdain. 

The next moment, hell broke loose – the wolves started attacking and they started fighting back. 

Harry ducked hexes, sent jinxes the wolves’ way, teamed up with Draco or Ron or Hermione or Neville to take one down and belatedly realised that the wolves were heading towards the boundaries of Hogwarts. They wanted to Disapparate. 

He doubled his efforts, desperate to come face to face with Greyback. If he got the chance, he could incapacitate the man and throw him in a cell to rot for the rest of his life. 

“Harry, watch out!” Ron’s voice rang out from his right and Harry threw himself to the ground. A green jet of light flew over him, missing him by inches while he saw in his peripheral vision how Ron charged at the attacker.

Harry jumped to his feet and spun around, taking stock of the situation. Everyone was engaged in a fight, the wolves were stronger than Harry had anticipated, and they had almost reached Hogsmeade. 

Then he saw something that made his blood freeze in his veins. 

Across the field stood Greyback, hands holding onto a struggling Draco. Harry saw red. 

*

Draco had just stunned a wolf that had threatened to hex McGonagall from behind when he felt the air knocked out of him. 

He hit the floor and dropped his wand in the process, scrambled on his knees to retrieve it, but a foot connected with his face and the sheer force of it sent Draco across the grass onto his back. 

He looked up into the cruel eyes of Fenrir Greyback. 

The wolf growled and lunged at the same time Draco jumped to his feet and made a run for it but Greyback was faster – he was a werewolf, bloody hell – and Draco felt a hand on his shoulder, whirling him around. 

Soon, Greyback had his wrists in a death grip. Draco kicked and squirmed with all his might but the man’s grip wouldn’t budge. 

“LET HIM GO!” 

Draco didn’t need to turn around to know it was Harry and Draco couldn’t express how glad he was for his boyfriend’s hero complex. 

“Make me, Potter.” Greyback’s voice was deep and threatening but Harry only raised his wand higher. The wolf laughed, pulled at Draco’s arms and turned him around, so he was pressed against Greyback’s chest. The wolf’s left arm held Draco in place and his hand had Draco’s pinned at his shoulder. 

He felt a claw-like finger at his throat. 

“I’d consider my next step very carefully, boy.” 

Draco could see the fury and the panic in Harry’s eyes and his grip around his wand tighten. 

Draco smirked, giving Harry the slightest of warnings; before Draco slammed his head back with so much force he was sure he’d have a concussion. 

A satisfying crack told him that he had broken Greyback’s nose. 

The wolf’s grip loosened for a moment but it was all he needed: Draco scrambled forward, providing Harry with a clear shot.

Greyback ducked the red ray of light and lunged at Draco again, claws first. 

Draco felt the pain before he realised that Greyback’s hand had made contact with his chest, and he fell to the grass again. 

He heard Harry shout curse after curse at the wolf but Draco’s attention was on his wand that lay mere feet away. He jumped to his feet, retrieved it in the process and looked around for Greyback. 

But the wolf was already running towards the bounds of Hogwarts and the jinxes Draco sent his way didn’t hit their target. 

Within seconds of Greyback’s disappearance, Harry was by Draco’s side. 

“Are you alright?!”

“Yes, Harry, it’s just a scratch-“

“Draco, your shirt is soaked in blood!” 

A look down his chest confirmed Harry’s statement and Draco raised his wand to close the wounds. 

“There, all patched up.”

He looked up into emerald eyes that were filled with worry and smiled. An adrenaline high was a brilliant thing, Draco mused. 

“Oh, you-“ Harry began but cut himself off by capturing Draco’s lips in a desperate kiss. 

“I almost aimed to kill.” 

Draco caressed Harry’s cheek with his hand, trying to sooth him. “Not the best idea with the Minister present, I’d say.”

That actually coaxed a smile out of Harry. 

XXX

The next thing Draco knew, he found himself in the headmistress’s office along with half the professors as well as Gawain Robards and the Minister. 

The damage was minimal. The child was alive as well as everyone else, though several sported injuries from the attack – including one reporter from the Prophet. 

“He wants to spread panic,” Robards concluded and Kingsley agreed darkly. 

“And I’m sure he was successful. This will be a feast for the press which we can’t prevent because the event was immensely publicised.”

“Did he give any clue as to how long we’d have to wait until the real attack?” Hermione looked paler than Draco had ever seen her. 

Kingsley shook his head. “I’m sure that was intentional. Create as much uncertainty as possible.”

In the end, they had no other choice than be on the lookout. Robards decided to expand the task force and send every available Hit Wizard after the wolves while Kingsley was off to talk to the Prophet and sooth the Wizarding Community. 

Harry, Ron and Draco headed to the common room while Hermione left them in favour of the library to research the symbol the wolves had been sporting. 

Her research turned up nothing useful, other than it being a symbol used by a Muggle organisation called “Nazis” during the Muggle version of the Second Great War. It didn’t help, Draco found, except make him feel a little more afraid of Greyback and his gang. 

They spent the rest of the evening bouncing ideas around, yet no matter how much they discussed, neither of them nor any of Harry’s classmates could think of a plan against the new threat. 

At quarter to curfew, Draco rose, though not really happy about returning to the Dungeons. 

“No, Draco, Greyback almost killed you, you’re staying with me tonight,” Harry said and the Chosen One sounded so vulnerable that neither of his dorm mates objected. 

Draco sighed inwardly and wasn’t even embarrassed by how fiercely Harry and he were holding onto each other that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now, that was fun! But there's more drama on the horizon... Hope you enjoyed it! Let me know :)


	5. Cry Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NEWTs week has finally come, with the Auror entry test looming over Harry, Draco and Ron the Saturday after.   
> But Saturday morning, Draco is nowhere to be found.

May found the Wizarding Community of Britain unsettled. Merely a year after Voldemort had vanished for good, a new threat was abound and spread panic. 

Several parents withdrew their children from Hogwarts in the aftermath of Greyback’s attack. The Prophet was full of stories on werewolves, their weaknesses, what allegedly lured them in which sent Hermione into indignant rants every time she opened the paper. 

Even if Draco hadn’t told him, Harry would have seen how Nott suffered. Everyone was talking about wolves-bane, silver and amulets, completely oblivious about the way it hurt their class mate. Harry knew that Nott’s greatest fear was that someone found him out. Harry hoped that – whenever that happened – he could be there to stand up for the man. 

Meanwhile, Hermione and Draco were sacrificing study time to research all about werewolves – at least until Draco had a chat with Nott and the student revealed that he had already searched the library for everything when school had begun to know more about his new condition. 

So Nott told them all he could, anything that would help should they face Greyback and his henchmen again. They were as prepared as possible.

Perhaps that was the reason that Harry was way more nervous about the upcoming N.E.W.T.s than a potential werewolf-human war. 

XXX

On May, 16th, the seventh year Gryffindors organised a pre-NEWT-chill-out-party. Or that was what Seamus dubbed it, anyway. 

Draco didn’t really care as long as it involved his friends and no studying at all. 

Hermione, of course, was missing until later that evening, having consulted her books one last time. Draco tried to feel bad about taking the afternoon off, but then Harry would brush his thumb across Draco’s palm and every qualm he had was forgotten. 

They deserved a night off. After all, the next week was going to be exhausting.

Monday: Transfiguration. And Ancient Runes for Draco and Hermione. Tuesday: Charms. Wednesday: Herbology. And Arithmancy for Hermione. Thursday: Potions. Friday: DADA. 

Oh, well, and Saturday: Auror entry exam. 

XXX

Draco would have loved nothing more than to say: The N.E.W.T.s didn’t turn out to be that exhausting after all!

But the lie wouldn’t part his mouth. 

By Wednesday evening, every student was in a foul mood. Even though Draco was immensely satisfied with his performances these past four exams, he couldn’t help the irritation that was gripping them all. 

That night, Draco lifted the “no sex during N.E.W.Ts week because we need to keep up our strength” ban and threw Harry against the wall of the Room of Requirement and sucked him off in record time. Well, The Boy Who Used To Suck At Potions had been a mess all day, fretting about the upcoming test and driving Draco up the wall. 

At least after three very satisfying hours, the incessant stream of “Oh no, I’m going to fail so bad tomorrow” had died down and Harry was drifting off into a deep sleep next to him. 

A cry woke Draco several hours later. He looked around, disoriented, not sure where he was until his mind supplied him with last night’s memories.

A glance to his left revealed the Boy Who Blundered, entangled in the sheets, lying on the floor. 

“Harry, are you alright?”

“No, I’m stuck, and we’re late, we’re going to miss the exam, and could I get some help here now?”

Draco chuckled after a look at the clock on the wall showed that they had indeed ample time until they had to be in the Great Hall to brew and write. 

He helped Harry out of the sheets and cut off any additional worrying with a fierce kiss. 

“Harry, look at the clock. We have time. Breathe.”

Surprisingly, Harry did as he was told. “Alright.”

“Now, I have a suggestion,” Draco began and let his hand slip down to Harry’s chest, fingers brushing against the exposed skin. “Why don’t we relax for another half an hour, shower and head down to a late breakfast after which we’ll be calm and composed to sit our Potions exam?”

He heard Harry’s breath hitch and saw his pupils dilate. Draco had already won. 

“And how would we spend the next half an hour?”

Draco took a step forward and pressed their bodies together from foot to chest. “Oh, I have several enticing ideas….”

XXX

Potions passed in a blur. If asked about it, Harry couldn’t exactly tell anyone how it had gone, but the nausea had settled so it must have been adequate after all. 

He owed Draco about a hundred blow jobs for his support on Wednesday night, Harry mused.

Thursday afternoon and evening were spent in the Room of Requirement with everyone who had wanted to join a last minute practise session. It was more about unwinding than practising, though, yet it still calmed everyone’s conscience. 

DADA was in fact the only exam Harry wasn’t worried about. Much. 

He knew he had passed the practical part with flying colours and if the written part had gone as well as Harry thought it had, that was one O he could call his own. 

“Of course you’ll receive an Outstanding, Harry,” Draco chided later that night in the midst of partying classmates. 

While Dean and Seamus were distributing Firewhiskey (courtesy of his boyfriend, of course) and beer, others were playing games, talking about their future or their plans for the holidays. Harry, Ron and Draco, however, were nursing orange juice and water and planned on heading to bed when curfew drew nearer. 

“I think I will return to the depth of the castle from whence I came,” Draco announced and pushed himself up from where he was leaning against Harry. 

He raised two hopeful eyebrows. “Stay?”

“Oh no, Harry, I’m not spending the night before the Auror entry exam in a tower full of loud and drunk students.”

Harry sighed but had no choice but to kiss Draco good-night (judging by the whistling and cat-calling, they got a bit carried away) and watch his boyfriend disappear through the portrait. 

Without warning, a thought struck Harry.

“Ron, Hermione?” A slurping sound told Harry that he had just interrupted some heavy snogging and he didn’t even feel sorry. 

“What is it, mate?”

“Have you two thought about where you’ll live once we all start training at the Ministry?”

His best friends shook their heads and Hermione explained how they had postponed that issue until after the wedding at the end of June. 

“Why do you ask?”

“Well, I just had an idea…. I mean, I own a house in the middle of London. And it’s rather big for one, or two people. So… What do you say?”

Hermione’s face split into the first big smile he had seen on her since exams had started. “You mean you want us to move into Grimauld Place with you?”

“Brilliant, mate! I was so worried about rent and stuff, but if we could live with you, that’d be moot, right?”

Harry laughed. “Yes, Ron, it would.” The happiness that settled into his stomach was overwhelming. 

He hesitated a moment before pressing on. “Do you think Draco will say yes if I ask him to move in?”

Hermione answered with a half amused, half exasperated sigh. “Harry, of course!”

“But just to be clear, mate,” Ron interjected, “our bedrooms have to be either really soundproof or miles apart!”

“I’m sure we can come up with something,” Harry replied before he and his friends broke into laughter.

XXX

Harry was still smiling when he entered the Great Hall for breakfast on Saturday, May 22nd. Out of habit he scanned the Slytherin table but he didn’t see his favourite blond anywhere. 

Nott was already there, looking more relaxed than Harry had ever seen the man, now that exams were over. 

Harry devoured his toast as fast as possible and headed over to the Slytherin table, weary of the glares being shot his way. 

“Hi, have you seen Draco?” 

Nott looked up, brows furrowed. Inexplicably, a dull feeling replaced the joy that had still filled his stomach. 

“Isn’t he with you?”

“No, what do you mean?”

Nott considered Harry for a moment as if weighing his next words. “Did Draco spend the night with you?”

“No, he went back right before curfew. What’s going on? Have you seen him?”

The man paled and his eyes widened as he shook his head. “Draco didn’t come back last night.”

Harry felt the world tilt on its axis. 

Draco. 

“Thanks,” he mumbled and rushed out of the Hall and stormed up the stairs, almost colliding with Ron and Hermione who took one look at him and hurried back to Gryffindor Tower with him. 

In his dorm, Harry ripped the Map out of his trunk and frantically began scanning it for the familiar dot titled ‘Draco Malfoy’. 

But it was nowhere to be found.

“Harry, what’s going on?!” Hermione shrieked. 

“Draco didn’t reach his dormitory last night,” Harry said through gritted teeth. 

“What?”

“Is he on there?”

Instead of replying, Harry threw the map down with a frustrated shout. 

“Harry, calm down! Perhaps he’s in the Room of Requirement! It doesn’t show up on the Map, does it?”

Hermione’s words ripped Harry out of his frustration. Within seconds, he was out of his dormitory.

XXX

The first thing Draco registered was pain. 

He groaned and made to rub the sleep out of his eyes – but he couldn’t. His hands were tied behind his back, thick, black ropes pinning his wrists together. His ankles had suffered a similar fate. 

He glanced around. This was not his dorm. This wasn’t the Room of Requirement. 

It looked like a cellar, dimly lit by what appeared to be the first rays of sunshine falling through barred windows. 

“Hello!” he shouted, glad that whoever had taken him hadn’t gagged him. 

That of course told him that he was being held somewhere where no one could hear his screams. 

“HELLO! Your victim is awake and would like to know what’s going on!” 

It came out braver than Draco felt. As a matter of fact, panic was rising in his chest when he heard footsteps. 

To his right, a door opened. 

It was Fenrir Greyback. 

Bloody hell. 

“Oh, our guest is awake. Welcome, Draco,” the wolf sneered. 

“If I’m your guest, untie me. This is immensely uncomfortable.”

He merely got a snort in return. “The word you’re looking for is hostage. And be glad that you’re only bound. I could have done a lot worse.”

The wolf’s tone was cold as ice and sent a shiver down Draco’s spine which didn’t go unnoticed. 

Greyback bit out a sharp laugh. “I see you’re scared-“

“I’m not-“

“- really?” 

It had been the wrong thing to say. Greyback’s gaze went wild, and Draco tried to remember when the next full moon was. Next weekend. So whatever Greyback did to him, it wouldn’t turn Draco. 

His relief was short lived for the man stretched out a clawed hand and dipped Draco’s chin up, forcing him to look into the wolf’s yellow eyes.

“You really want to tell me you’re not scared for your life at the moment?” 

Draco swallowed but bit his tongue. Greyback smirked and revealed a set of pointy teeth. This close, Draco could smell blood and sweat and he suppressed the urge to vomit. 

“Why did you take me?” Draco managed through gritted teeth. 

A yellow nail travelled up his cheek, scraping the skin but not breaking it. Draco could feel panic rise and his heart beat quicken. 

“I saw you with Potter that day. Do you know the way he looks at you?” 

Harry. Greyback was trying to get to Harry. 

And Harry would jump right into Greyback’s trap in order to rescue him. 

“I’m going to kill Harry Potter, Draco. And I will do it with your help. We’re not very hard to find. The boy will come running and I will rip him to pieces. The wizards will weep and despair and we will be successful.”

Greyback roared with triumphant laughter, slapped Draco hard across the face and turned around to leave. 

Draco felt the blood trickle down his chin before the pain had a chance to register.

XXX

It only took one try for Harry to conjure up a door to the Room of Requirement. Draco’s and his room was empty. 

There was no one here. 

Harry stormed out and collided with Hermione and Ron. 

“Is he in there?”

Harry shook his head. “We need to find him.”

“A locator spell?” Hermione suggested.

“Can you do one?”

She nodded. “But I need something of Draco’s for it to work.” 

Harry’s mind was racing but he knew that Draco hadn’t left anything in his dorm the past week. 

They needed to get into the Slytherin dormitory. They needed Nott. 

“I’m on it,” Harry bellowed as he was already halfway down the corridor. 

Nott was just exiting the Great Hall as he caught sight of Harry. He must have made a frightening sight, storming down the marble staircase. 

“He’s gone”, Harry explained. “We need something of him for a locator spell.”

For a second, Nott simply stared at Harry, eyes wide, like a deer caught in the head-lights. Then he nodded and hurried down towards the dungeons. 

XXX

Attempting to flee had not been the best idea. 

Draco had succeeded in getting out of the ropes with great effort only to find out the cellar had been enchanted as to prevent him from disapparating. 

He had tried to sneak out through the door but there had been a guard and then there had been three others and all the wandless magic in the world wouldn’t have been enough against four werewolves. 

Thus, Draco found himself bleeding and brutally beaten in one of the mansion’s rooms. 

The house itself seemed to belong to one of Greyback’s henchmen or simply a couple of wizards who were unlucky enough to get into Greyback’s way. 

Draco couldn’t see or hear much through the veil of blood and pain. He could feel the gash on his forehead which was bleeding uncontrollably. Then there was a wound on his left thigh and he was rather sure he had a few cracked ribs as well as five distinctive claw wounds decorating his chest. 

He wished he could pass out but he fought to stay conscious. He couldn’t risk not seeing Harry. 

Even if it was for the last time, since Draco wasn’t sure how much more blood he could lose in good faith. 

XXX

Harry’s hands were shaking so he balled them into fists. He couldn’t reign in his emotions, anger and fear all mingled together in a hot turmoil that wanted to escape, wanted to hurt whoever had taken Draco against his will. 

Hermione was performing the location charm with Draco’s favourite shirt while Nott and Ron were hovering next to her. 

Harry started pacing while a ball of light was forming. 

“Harry! I’ve found him!”

He whirled around and saw the image of a mansion not unlike Malfoy Manor flicker above the ball of light, along with an address. 

“We have to get to Hogsmeade and apparate. Come on.” He turned but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. 

“Harry, think for one second!” Hermione forced her voice to sound calm without much success. “This has trap written all over it! It shouldn’t be so easy to locate Draco. Whoever took him wants you to run off after him immediately!”

“I don’t care!”

“Harry, we need help! We need to tell McGonagall!” 

“Fine, do that. It’s Draco! They took Draco! I can’t just wait; I need to get to him!”

Harry turned but found Ron blocking his way. 

“Mate, we should at least send Nott to McGonagall and let him tell her what’s going on!”

Harry took a deep breath, and then turned towards the Slytherin. 

“Theodore, tell the headmistress what happened and that we’re going for Draco and that we’d appreciate a little help.” Harry turned back to Ron. “Satisfied?”

Ron shrugged. “Better than nothing.”

Harry glanced at Nott, who nodded solemnly and they hurried back into the Entrance Hall, the Slytherin rushing into the Great Hall in search for the headmistress while Harry, Ron and Hermione burst through the portal. 

Harry summoned three brooms and soon, they were flying towards Hogsmeade.

XXX

“Someone just passed through the gate,” Draco heard someone say. 

“That was quick.” Greyback moved towards where Draco was lying on the floor. “That boy must really love you, Draco.” He felt the tip of a wand against his throat. “Killing him in front of your eyes will be so much fun.”

“Please, don’t-“

“Spare me the begging, Draco. I might like when my victims beg, but I’m not going to rip your throat out…. You’ll have to live with the knowledge that Harry Potter died because of you.”

“No, please-“

“Shut up!” The wand pressed deeper and Draco closed his mouth, tears burning in his eyes, threatening to fall. 

He could hear shouts outside their room. Greyback’s hand moved across Draco’s face and suddenly, he was able to see again without blood blocking his eyes. 

Greyback wasn’t alone in the room. About forty people in brown cloaks were standing behind them, wands raised and aimed at the door. 

XXX

Harry, Ron and Hermione made quick work of the guards. Nothing could stop Harry; he was flinging his wand at every man or woman in a brown cloak, not even bothering with actual hexes. 

His magic and his anger had joined forces and soon, their attackers were lying on the floor, unconscious or dead, Harry didn’t care.

With a flick of his wand, he blasted the door open. 

Fenrir Greyback had his wand trained at Draco. His blond hair was dishevelled and bloodied, his shirt ripped, exposing deep wounds and there was a nasty gash on his left thigh. 

Harry would have charged at the wolf that very moment if it weren’t for the army behind him. 

“Welcome, Potter,” Greyback barked, “you’re earlier than expected.”

“Let him go.”

The wolf bared his teeth. “No.”

“Greyback, I swear, I will rip you apart limb by limb-“

“Now, now, what a vivid imagination you have.” A barking laugh. “One wrong move of you, Potter, and I will slit Draco’s pretty throat and you will lose him. Are we clear?”

Harry felt the adrenaline give way to panic but he forced it down, keeping his wand steady. “What do you want?”

“I want to kill you, Harry Potter. Lay down your wand and don’t resist and Draco will survive.”

He needed a way out of this. There had to be a way – but they were outnumbered. Before Harry could form a reply, Hermione and Ron had stepped forward. 

“You’ll have to go through us first!” Ron spat at the wolf who merely roared with laughter. 

“That can be arranged.”

That was all the warning they got before Greyback shoved Draco to the ground and raised his wand along with the rest of his followers. 

Harry had never used _Protego Maxima_ so often in quick succession. He ducked even more curses, stunned several wolves but he soon had to admit that they stood no chance. 

Then, Greyback himself was after him, sending green jet of light after green jet of light his way and Harry had almost resigned himself to certain death when a commotion outside the room caught his attention. 

Both he and Greyback turned in time to see what had to be fifty Aurors storm the room. 

The wolf growled and lunged at him, but Harry evaded the attack and disarmed Greyback with a quick “ _Expelliarmus_!”. 

Harry collided with another wolf that fell to his feet, stunned by Hermione and the split second of distraction was all it took Greyback to jump him and knock his wand out of his hands. 

*

Draco had scrambled towards a wall and was pulling himself up when what seemed to be the entire Auror department including Gawain Robards stormed the room. 

Draco had to thank Hermione later for forcing Harry to share the news of Draco’s kidnapping with someone outside their little trio.

A smile had half-formed on his lips when all his blood froze in his veins. 

Harry disarmed Greyback but collided with a stunned wolf and the next thing Draco knew, Greyback had knocked Harry’s wand across the room and was on his boyfriend. 

Energy ripped through Draco as if someone had cast healing spell and Draco stumbled forward. 

He had no wand but Harry’s lay a few meters away. Greyback had Harry pinned to the floor and was baring his teeth, aiming for the throat. 

Draco picked up the wand and ignored the pain as his blood rushed back from his head, aimed and shouted with all his might “ _SECTUMSEMPRA_!”

The flash hit Greyback’s side and the force of the blow hurled him off of Harry. 

A few seconds later, the wolf was back on his feet, left side exuding blood all over his robes. Draco aimed again and again as Greyback ran towards him and the fourth and final _Sectumsempra_ finally threw the wolf to the floor where he jerked in a pool of his own blood and then lay still. 

“Draco!”

He hardly heard Harry shout his name but he felt familiar hands around him as his boyfriend pulled him into a tentative hug that lasted forever until the tension seeped from Draco and he brought his own arms up despite the pain the movement caused to hug Harry back. 

He felt his knees give but Harry was there, supporting him while lowering him to the ground. 

“You came, you idiot,” Draco said but his voice was rough and barely audible. 

“Of course,” Harry soothed him. 

“We missed the entry test.” Draco had to chuckle at the situational irony. 

The green eyes widened for a moment. “Blimey. I completely forgot.”

Draco’s laugh turned into a pained cough after two seconds and suddenly, every wound on his body hit him with full force. 

Draco welcomed unconsciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, so much for the big showdown of part III.... Let me know if you liked it! I debated whether to end with a cliffhanger but decided against it since it would frustrate me, as a reader, incredibly....^^
> 
> Only two chapters left to go but part IV is finished. It will be a little different, as in there will be a sort of prequel, but I'll be more specific in the end notes of the epilogue. 
> 
> In other news, I've started a new Harry/Draco AU which will be called "Gorgeous" and which I will hopefully publish soon. Just fyi, never too early for advertising a little :)


	6. Scars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Draco has new scars as the final year at Hogwarts draws to an end...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha, I still got to post it today! (well, it's 11pm in Germany, it still counts as Saturday. I had my doubts since my Mum is celebrating her birthday and I was "the help" but I was allowed to cut out a little while ago :)

How he got from the mansion to the waiting room at St. Mungo’s, Harry didn’t know. All he knew was that the healers were taking care of Draco and that he shouldn’t worry, then suddenly, Gawain Robards was there as well as Kingsley and they wanted to know every detail of that day. 

So he told them, although it was a strange experience at first. Harry felt detached, as if he was watching himself from outside his body. 

Once he came to the part where Draco killed Greyback, the world fell back into place again, queasiness included. 

“ _Sectumsempra_?” Robards asked. “What kind of spell is that?” 

“Professor Snape invented it.” Harry hoped the explanation would be enough for the Auror. 

“There you are, Mr Potter!” Harry turned and saw the headmistress cross the waiting room. “How is Mr Malfoy?”

Harry swallowed the lump in his throat. “The healers say not to worry.”

“Then we shall listen to them. They are very good at their job, Mr Potter. Now,” she addressed the other men, “is Greyback in custody? Can we appease our students and their parents?”

“Minerva, Greyback is dead. Draco Malfoy killed him using one of Snape’s spells.”

For a second, the professor seemed at a loss for words. 

“The remaining followers have been taken in by my colleagues,” Robards continued for Kingsley, “and will be dealt with in due time. We’ve set up a meeting with the press, all is cared for. Except one little issue.”

“What?”

“It concerns Harry, Ron and Draco,” Kinglsey said which caused Harry’s head to snap up. “You missed the Auror entry exam,” the Minister explained when Harry’s eyes narrowed in question. 

“Will we be allowed to retake it?” Harry dared and looked from Kingsley to Robards. 

The latter sighed. “Yes. In case of emergency, applicants are allowed to retake it. Usually the emergency refers to sudden illness, not, however, to being kidnapped by a terrorist or trying to rescue the victim...” 

Harry would have felt bad about it if Robards hadn’t looked so amused. 

XXX

When Draco drifted back to consciousness, he was wrapped in warmth and softness. The pain was gone, though he felt bandages on his face, chest and thigh when he shifted. 

“Draco?” Harry’s voice. 

His eyes snapped open. His boyfriend was sitting on a chair to his left in what looked like a room at St. Mungo’s. 

“Hey, Chosen One.”

Harry smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m so sorry, Draco.”

“Whatever for?”

“Greyback took you to get to me, if you and I weren’t-“

“Don’t! Please. If the next words out of your mouth include ‘weren’t together’ or something similar, I will kill you.”

“But Draco,” Harry’s eyes were full of worry, “you could have been dead and it would have been my fault!”

“And so could Ron and Hermione but they aren’t going to leave your side as much as I will. So the point is moot. Stop thinking about it, you can’t change it.”

Harry considered him for a long moment and Draco was utterly conscious that his hair had to be a mess and that the hospital gown did nothing for him but make him look ill. 

He’d have loved to hear Harry’s internal monologue. Ron and Hermione had told him how often they’d had to stop Harry’s “I can go Horcrux hunting alone” speech in the weeks prior to their departure and how the Boy Who Lived To Carry The Weight Of The World On His Shoulders Alone never wanted any help in fear of endangering his friends’ lives. 

Who’d never leave. Even if he shoved them away. 

Draco saw the moment when Harry realised that his conviction was no match for Draco’s stubbornness – the lines around his eyes softened and a smile played around his lips. 

Draco returned it. “So, what has been going on?”

Harry shrugged. “Nothing much. Robards and Kingsley are waiting outside; they want to talk to you before they go to the press conference.”

He’d figured that much. Apparently, he hadn’t been out for too long. “And the exam?”

“We can retake it. Emergency and all.”

Draco nodded, feeling immensely better. For a moment he had thought all the energy he had invested in the Auror trials had been in vain. 

Harry rose and smirked. “I’ll get them. The sooner I have you to myself, the better.” 

Draco told the wizards all he could remember: Walking back to the dungeons, how he had caught a movement in his peripheral vision, and how the world had turned black. Waking up in the cellar, trying to escape, the torture… and the rescue. 

For all he tried, he couldn’t decipher Robards’ expression. Kingsley looked grim, then almost respectful after Draco had finished but Robards remained a mystery. Harry had visibly paled when Draco had mentioned the torture.

“Well, we’ll leave you two alone, I’m sure Mr Malfoy needs his rest,” the Auror said as they got to their feet. “If you’re well enough by next Saturday, we’d schedule the retake then but an owl will follow on the matter.”

“Thank you,” Harry and Draco answered simultaneously.

“No, thank you. Without you, Greyback would still be at large.” 

XXX

On Sunday, Draco was allowed to return to Hogwarts. 

On Tuesday, the bandages came off and Draco saw with a mixture of horror and thrill that Greyback’s attacks had left scars. The healers had warned him that, being magical wounds, they’d not only take longer to heal but also might leave permanent damage. And since no one had closed them as soon as Draco had the claw marks from the Freedom Day attack, the magic had had more time to do damage.

Draco had seen Bill Weasley and – even though he would deny it until the day he died – he had been terrified of looking in the mirror for the first time after the bandages came off. 

He had scars. The one on his thigh was worst, standing out against his pale skin. The five claw marks on his chest were overshadowed by the ones left by _Sectumsempra_ but still visible. His face was now sporting two fine lines – invisible in the dark or from further away, but upon closer inspection very striking. One went horizontally across his right cheek, the other vertically from his forehead down to his left cheek. 

“Didn’t you hear? Scars are the new thing this season!” Harry beamed at him and it took Draco a moment to recall the joke Charlie Weasley made during their first career day. Draco chuckled despite himself. 

“I think they’re rather hot.”

Draco raised an eloquent eyebrow. 

“I do.” As if to prove a point, Harry stepped closer and put butterfly kisses on both Draco’s new scars. “And I’m sure your fan club will, too.”

Groaning, he wrapped his arms around his Chosen One and rested his head on his shoulder. “Don’t remind me!” 

Robards and Kingsley had been very frank with the press and subsequently, everyone knew who had killed Fenrir Greyback. 

It soothed some of the haters to know that Draco Malfoy had saved Harry Potter’s life. And it turned his admirers absolutely mental. 

On the bright side: Draco had received his first fan mail. 

On Thursday, Blaise called Draco “Scarface” for the first time and it took all of Draco’s mental discipline to stop himself from punching the git in the face.

His mood improved rapidly, however, when Harry couldn’t hold back any longer and asked Draco to move in with him (and the future bride and groom) into Grimauld Place. 

“I wanted to wait until after the exam, but I just couldn’t… And it’s absolutely fine if you want to take a little time to think about it, it is a big step and-“

“Harry, breathe.” Draco hated to admit how warm and fuzzy he felt inside. Harry Potter wanted to live with him. True, it was fast and it was a big step, but…. Waking up next to the Boy Whom He Had Amazing Sex With every day? Coming home to someone he loved? 

“Yes.”

“What?”

“Potter, did you go deaf and failed to mention it to me?”

“Haha, very funny, Malfoy. But – you’ll move in with me?”

“Yes.” 

Then Harry jumped him and clashed their lips together, all teeth and tongue and happiness and Draco’s head was spinning from all the emotions. 

On Friday, Seamus decided that one last party was in order and busied himself with preparations to take his mind off the fact that on Sunday, they’d receive their N.E.W.T. results. Draco wrote his mother to smuggle in a little alcohol again. 

On Saturday morning, Harry, Ron and Draco went to the Ministry to retake their Auror exam and the three of them left the room with matching smiles. 

“So it went well?” Hermione asked when she met them in the Entrance Hall. 

“I’d never thought I’d say this but it was fun!” Ron explained and then went into a tirade about the questions and scenarios. “I mean, all those theoretical things were a bit tricky, but the ones where you had to write what you’d do or how you’d react, that was actually interesting. I think… it went well!”

“Told you so,” Hermione grinned and kissed Ron to prevent any further monologues, for which Draco was grateful even though it meant suffering through their PDA.

On Saturday evening, Draco was getting ready for one last party with the Gryffindors as well as a big number of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw guests, when Theodore entered. 

Draco had thanked him for helping Harry with the rescue mission and Theodore had blushed a bit as if no one had ever thanked him before. 

While the rest of the seventh years had spent their free week lounging around the grounds or swimming with the Squid, Theodore had retreated to the library as far as Draco knew. 

“And, Theodore, big plans for tonight?”

He shook his head. “I thought I’d read.”

“Yes, because you never get a chance to do that.”

The actual hearty laugh Draco earned with that said a lot about how much freer the man felt now that Greyback wasn’t threatening him and his mother anymore.

“Why don’t you ditch the books for tonight and come with me?”

“What? Where?”

“To the Gryffindors. Most of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff are coming as well. There’ll be food and drinks. It’ll be nice. A chance to see your classmates one last time?”

At least it was a look of indecision that took over Theodore’s face, so he wasn’t completely averse to the idea. 

“Come on, you’ve been studying so hard these past years, ever since you got bitten you’ve been stressed and now, after everything is over, you have the perfect chance to relax. Besides, you will have to interact with people once you’re working for the Ministry. Consider it an exercise. And for what it’s worth, I’m sure the Trio will be glad to see you. You did, after all, help them in a moment of need and they’re still grateful.” Draco rounded off his little speech with the most enticing smile the Malfoy genome had been able to bless him with. 

Theodore’s indecision faltered. After another long moment, he mumbled “Alright.”

“Brilliant.”

“But what do I wear? Robes?”

As it turned out, Theodore had no Muggle clothes with him whatsoever and all the informal wear he possessed was way too stiff for a tower party. So Draco found a pair of jeans that had been way too tight for him for two years (which he refused to throw away because they used to be his favourite) and a shirt that fit him well but since the other Slytherin was taller, would suit Theodore, too. 

After the first awkward minutes, the werewolf seemed comfortable enough in the unfamiliar attire. 

The Fat Lady merely raised an eyebrow when she saw them. “Fashionably late, as always, Mr Malfoy.”

“So it would seem.”

Theodore looked a bit shocked. After eight years of entering their dormitory through an immobile gargoyle, a talking painting seemed to have surprised him a bit. 

“Is your friend invited as well?”

“Yes.” Draco’s tone left no room for doubt, even though no one in the Tower had any idea. 

“Very well then, password?”

Draco sent his most charming smile her way. “Lion cups.”

“Enjoy the party!”

After the portrait had closed, Theodore gave him a scandalised look. “You lied to her!”

“So?”

“It’s… I don’t…”

“Don’t fret. It will be fine. Alright, now you might want to close your eyes against all the red and gold, it’s rather ghastly the first time you see it….”

They finished their climb and were met by a party already in full swing. Granted, no one was drunk yet but there were smiles and beer bottles and wine (courtesy of Draco, of course) all around. 

“Oi, Draco!” Seamus saw them first. “You’re late.”

“And fashionably so….”

“Whatever, your booze was here so we had no complaints. Who’s your friend?”

Dean appeared at Seamus’s side. “You’re Nott, right?”

Theodore actually managed a tentative “Yes, hi.”

“He’s been in our year since first grade, Seamus!”

“Sorry, but there are still a few people I haven’t actually talked to, yet.”

“It doesn’t surprise me,” Draco said, “Theodore’s idea of a Saturday night consists of reading and studying. That might mean that he could beat Hermione or me for Top Of The Class tomorrow, but it also means that he never has any fun with his classmates. It took some clever scheming, but I convinced him to come.”

Suddenly, Seamus looked very enthusiastic. “Alright mate, any student who has a chance of taking Hermione down from her high horse is welcome in Gryffindor Tower. Let me show you the bar…”

Ignoring the protests Theodore was muttering, Seamus dragged him off into the crowd, Dean at their heels. 

Draco chuckled. Theodore was nervous, not only because of the people but also because the following night – his last night at Hogwarts – was the full moon. 

Well, hopefully he’d loosen up a bit and be able to unwind, Draco mused as he looked around for a mop of unruly black hair. 

XXX

Two hours, two butterbeers and a very nice make-out session (because they could, now) later, Draco checked on Theodore again. 

He was sitting next to Seamus, Dean and Lavender, the latter of which were sitting closer together than necessary. Seamus seemed to be talking incessantly and didn’t even seem too drunk yet. Theodore was clutching the same glass of wine that Seamus had equipped him with when they had come. 

Draco poured a glass of apple juice and went over, catching the last bits of one of Seamus’s muggle-father-witch-mother stories. Which actually were amusing, if you knew about the Muggle world. 

Theodore was laughing. Honest to Merlin laughing. Belatedly, Draco remembered that the man had told them he had been bitten on his way home from a Muggle friend, so he was bound to get the references Seamus made to microwaves and TV and other exotic things. 

“Hey, there,” Draco announced his presence and sat down gracefully between Dean and Theodore. 

“What, the Boy Who Lived let you go?”

“We’re not joined at the hip, Finnegan.”

“No, rather joined at the mouth,” Seamus laughed and toppled over embarrassingly. 

Draco smirked. “And his correct title is the Boy Who Lived Again; you should know that by now.”

“Funny, Malfoy. And why are you drinking apple juice?”

“I’m not; I was planning on swapping with Theodore since the wine doesn’t seem to be to his liking.”

The man shrugged hesitantly. “Not that much,” he admitted.

“Well, here you go.” Draco handed him his glass, accepted the wine and took a sip. “Oh, amazing. You do realise you turned down a wine that costs 40 galleons a bottle?” Theodore choked on the apple juice and blushed furiously. Seamus smiled at the sight and his cheeks went ever pinker. Interesting. 

“40 galleons?!”

“Probably. I can’t tell them apart very well, but you see I provided the Firewhiskey, or rather; my mother bought it and sent it here. I asked her to include a bit of the wine my father was so fond of before he got a one-way ticket to Azkaban, because if my classmates don’t drink it, no one else will. Anyway, it was all rather expensive wine, but whether that is a 40 galleon bottle or a 30 or even a 50, I can’t say for sure. 40 just seemed like the diplomatic solution.”

Theodore looked at him for a long moment. “Does your father know?”

“Of course not. I don’t want to give him a heart attack.” 

Theodore shook his head and took another sip from his juice. Draco’s eyes fell upon Seamus who was watching his fellow Slytherin. 

As Draco spent a bit more time with them, one thing became clear: Seamus was definitely interested in Theodore. Draco had never seen Seamus interested in anyone before, too obsessed with everyone else’s sex life apparently. It was oddly endearing, especially since Theodore even talked a bit more than three words at a time. As it turned out, he had a few Muggle-wizard-misunderstanding stories of his own to tell and Seamus was thrilled every time while Draco mostly failed to get the joke. 

“Found him!” Draco craned his neck and saw Ron and Hermione, waving across the room, supposedly to get Harry’s attention, who promptly appeared. 

The Trio joined the group, Harry sliding against Draco’s back and kissing his neck. 

“I was wondering where you’d gone to.”

One look at them was all it took for Seamus to topple over again in laughter. 

“What’s Seamus on about?” Ron wondered. 

“Oh, I think my point that Harry and I are not joined at the hips just lost credibility.”

Ron roared with laughter and Draco could even feel Harry’s chuckle against his back. 

Thankfully, Lavender chimed in for a change of topic. “So Hermione, how are the wedding plans?”

“Making progress. My mom, Mrs Weasley, Draco and I are going bridal gown shopping next week.”

Her statement was met with snickering from everyone save Draco, who was hiding his face in his hands. 

“I always knew you’d be the girl, Draco,” Seamus quipped from next to him. 

“Shut it, Finnegan. Hermione values my sense of fashion.”

“It’s true,” Ron jumped in, “Draco helped us choose all our dress robes for this year’s Ball.”

“Interesting…. And the fact that your and Harry’s were matching was complete coincidence, I take it?”

“Yes,” Draco grit out and damn, why would Seamus of all people notice something like that?

“Anyway,” Hermione interrupted the banter, “we’re having the ceremony at the Burrow in the garden, like Fleur and Bill had, and our parents are taking over most of the planning so we were able to concentrate on our exams. Invitations are going out next week as well, so watch for our owl.”

Lavender cooed at the prospect. “That’s so nice of you too invite us all!” 

“Well, I have to find a way to fill my side of the tent. Ron’s family is a little bit larger than mine.”

“You only have your parents and one aunt. It’s not hard to top that.” Ron grinned and Draco realised that he had even less family than Hermione to invite to a hypothetical wedding. Not that he wanted to get married, actually. 

“You’re invited, too, Theodore.” 

The werewolf looked up from his glass so fast he might have suffered whiplash. 

“Don’t look so surprised,” Draco spoke up. “Once you help the trio with a quest or a rescue mission, you’re in it for life.” 

Theodore looked genuinely touched by Hermione’s invitation and his mumbled “thank you” was heart-felt. 

They kept on talking about various topics, including Dean’s, Lavender’s and Seamus’s plans, and the Irish boy kept glancing and smiling at Theodore who returned the smiles, shyly and tentatively, but he did. 

So when Seamus got up to get another round of beers, Draco volunteered to help. Despite their not very vocal relationship, Draco considered Theodore a friend and he needed to make sure he was ok. 

They were gathering the drinks when Draco cleared his throat. “Seamus, can I have a word?”

The wizard turned with wide eyes. “Have I done something?”

“No, but you might.”

“Draco, you look a bit scary at the moment.”

“Good. What are your intentions towards Theodore?”

Seamus’s eyes widened almost comically. “How – I don’t... What do you-?”

“I mean you flirting with Theodore, I’m not blind. And he seems to like you, if him talking more than five words at once is any indication.”

“Seriously?”

“So not the point, Finnegan.”

“What is the point, then, Malfoy?”

“What are your intentions?”

“Oh, is this the ‘If you hurt him, I’ll make your life a living hell’ speech of the best friend?”

“More or less. And you know what I’m capable of, so I’ll spare you the actual threats.”

It was satisfying to watch the Irish boy swallow. “Well, he… He is nice. And funny, when he actually talks. I always thought Death Eater when I saw him the past years but he has Muggle friends and all… So, I guess I’d like to get to know him better?”

Draco nodded. “Good. But you better exchange that Whiskey for a beer or you’ll do something stupid. Theodore is a bit shy, so take it slow.”

“Yes, mother. Can we get back to them now? Or they’ll get suspicious.”

As it turned out, Seamus took Draco’s advice to heart. He neither initiated a drinking game, nor did he try to sit next to Theodore. And once they both discovered an affliction for something called a Nintendo, some sort of Muggle game, Seamus extended a challenge to the Slytherin to beat him at some sort of car game. 

Theodore blushed and nodded and the smile his reaction put on Seamus’s face was adorable. 

The Boy Who Lived To Be Oblivious had no idea what was going on, of course, while Hermione and Draco exchanged knowing smirks. 

All in all, it was a nice evening. 

“So I take it you don’t regret me taking you along?” Draco asked when they made their way back to the dungeons just before curfew. 

Theodore shrugged. “It was alright.”

“Congratulations on surviving Seamus, by the way. He can be a bit of a pain in the arse.”

The sudden vulgarity made Theodore laugh briefly before he blushed. “He’s alright.”

“Well, good, because I believe you have to visit within the next few weeks to show him who’s the better Mario or something.”

Theodore remained silent but he was smiling. 

_Well_ , Draco thought, _that seems promising_.

XXX

On Sunday, Draco went for one last run, this time without the Concealment Charm to honour the occasion. He was counting on a lot of hangovers to shield him from prying eyes as he took in the small hills and tress and the sun’s reflection on the lake’s surface one last time. 

It was all rather nostalgic. 

His thoughts drifted to the ceremony at two that afternoon. Hermione and he had been very keen to never mention the Top Of The Class medal this past week but underneath it all, Draco felt the tension. 

Though, standing at the edge of the lake, looking up at the castle, Draco was wondering. What did it matter? A week ago he had almost been killed by a werewolf. He was going to move in with Harry in June and his mother was going to be just as proud of him as second best graduate or third best graduate than she would be if he were number one. And his father never wanted to speak to him again anyway. There was no pleasing him anymore. So what if Hermione won the medal? 

Draco felt eerily calm when he entered the Great Hall later that day. The house tables had been exchanged with rows of chairs and Draco dragged Theodore with him as he took his seat next to Harry and Ron, who had apparently thought it best to separate him from Hermione. 

McGonagall’s speech was brief but intense, speaking of the war and lost loved ones, broken ties and new allegiances. She then explained that she would call the individual student’s name, who could then proceed to the front and accept a parchment with his or her results. 

“But first, I want to announce the top three students of each year.” 

Draco felt Harry take his hand and Theodore tense beside him. 

“I would like to ask Miss Hermione Granger, Mr Draco Malfoy and Mr Theodore Nott to join me in the front.”

A round of applause followed them to the podium. 

“Mr Nott,” the headmistress began, “I congratulate you on the third best N.E.W.T.s result in the class of 1999.”

Their classmates clapped enthusiastically and the man took his parchment with shaking hands. 

Hermione and Draco exchanged glances. Hermione’s mouth was set in a thin line and her hands were clutching her robes in agitation while Draco accepted that whatever was about to come, he could be proud. 

He released a breath he hadn’t realised he was holding and faced the professor. McGonagall seemed oddly amused as she produced another parchment and addressed them. 

“Both of you have performed impressively on all your exams and the distinction between first and second place has never been as close as this in the history of our school. I congratulate the Top Of The Class of 1999, Miss Hermione Granger.”

Draco could hear Ron’s cheer above the applause and couldn’t help his fond expression as Hermione’s face split into a smile when McGonagall said her name and shook her hand. 

The headmistress handed him his parchment but he didn’t look at it – instead he turned to Hermione. 

“Well done, Miss Granger.”

Hermione took one look at his smile and when she realised it was genuine she pulled him into a crushing hug. 

“Hermione, you’re hugging me.”

“Suck it up, Malfoy,” she said, voice thick. So Draco gave her a moment. When she released him he glanced at his results for the first time. Everything was Outstanding. 

The three of them posed for a photograph with the headmistress and then followed the applause down to their seats where Ron immediately swooped Hermione up in his arms and Harry offered his congratulations to Theodore before turning to Draco. 

“You seem happy, Draco. Despite second place.” 

“Well, what can I say? I can live with my straight O average as can my mother and my boyfriend. What more could I want?”

It was perfect how Draco didn’t need to mention his father at all for Harry to realise what Draco was playing at. 

“I’m happy for you,” Harry said and leaned in for a chaste kiss. Whether he was happy because of his boyfriend’s results or because Draco had finally given up trying to please his father, Draco wasn’t sure. 

XXX

The train ride home was comfortable, even though Theodore was huddled against the window, trying to catch up on some much needed sleep after the full moon. 

Last night had been spent with trying to cheer Ron up. While Harry had managed to get Exceeds Expectations in every subject including Potions and even an Outstanding in DADA and Charms, Ron had achieved an Acceptable in Potions and Herbology. 

Hermione’s monologue about how brave Ron had behaved when they had moved in on Greyback and how Robards had witnessed it and how amazing all three of them had performed during the trials, had finally stopped Ron looking like a drowning cat. 

Draco was glad that after sleeping on it, the Weasel seemed in a better mood. 

The blond leaned back and rested his head against Harry’s shoulder and gazed out the window, watching trees and houses rush past. 

School was over. If everything went as planned, he was starting Auror training in September. Despite the long break, the first four weeks were already booked.

Tomorrow, Harry would floo a realtor to sell Spinner’s End – after; of course, they had taken everything out of the house and put it somewhere in Grimauld Place. Then of course, Draco would move, as would Ron and Hermione if they managed to before the wedding. 

Then there was the wedding to be planned and prepared, a bridal gown to be picked and bridesmaids dresses to be selected. 

And perhaps they’d travel a bit, Draco mused. He really wanted to take Harry to Paris. Or Rome. Or Venice. 

The image of Harry and him, wandering along the Canal Grande eating ice cream made him chuckle a little heavier than advisable. 

“What?” Harry looked over from the Quibbler he had bought from Luna. 

“Nothing…” Draco shook his head and Harry kissed him on the forehead. 

It was going to be a great summer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know how Theo/Seamus happened, but I'm not sorry it did :) I hope you like them, too!
> 
> Only the Epilogue to go! I can't believe part III is almost over... don't worry, though, the Hallway-verse will continue to update on Saturdays!


	7. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A week before the big Weasley-Granger wedding, the boys hear back from the Auror Department regarding their applications.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG, last chapter for part III.... enjoy :)

Draco wondered how this had become his life as he simply, without warning, flooed to the Burrow a week before the wedding and Mrs Weasley didn’t even look up from where she was preparing breakfast. 

“Tea, Draco?”

“Good morning, Mrs Weasley, sorry for dropping by unannounced like this. Thank you.” He accepted a cup but couldn’t contain his nervousness.

The witch took one look at him and the envelope that sat unopened in his hand before she shouted for Ron and Harry to get down to the kitchen. 

“What is it, mom?” Ron really wasn’t a morning person. 

“Draco!” Harry rushed over and kissed him hurriedly. “What a nice surprise!”

In answer, Draco held up the envelope. 

Harry’s eyes widened. “Is that-?”

“Yes, a letter from the Auror department. I haven’t opened it; I wanted to wait for you. Your owls should be here any moment.”

They sat down, staring at their respective cups, not bothering with food given their anxiety until after what had to have been hours (which probably were ten feeble minutes, Draco assumed), two Ministry owls landed in front of them. 

Harry took his, but Ron stared at his letter in horror. “I can’t. What if they say they don’t want me?”

“Who doesn’t want you?” Hermione asked upon entering the kitchen and immediately screamed when she saw the letters. 

“The Ministry,” Rom mumbled. “Darling, can you open the letter for me? Please?”

“Are you sure you don’t want to-“

“Yes. I’m sure. Surer than sure.” Hermione nodded and took the letter. 

Ron was turning green so Draco suggested, “On three?”

After they had opened them and taken out the parchment, there was silence. 

“ _Dear Mr Malfoy,_ ” the letter began but Draco skipped right to the sentence that would define his life. “ _It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been found adequate to start as a trainee in the Auror department of the Ministry for Magic. You find attached a list of all necessary documents as well as a schedule for the commencement of your training. Yours sincerely, Gawain Robards._ ” 

Draco could barely contain his joy and only slightly successfully held back a shout of victory. He looked up to find Harry smiling. When the two of them turned to Hermione, her expression was unreadable. 

“What?” Ron squeaked from his place at the table. 

“Well, they’re saying that your N.E.W.T.s don’t meet the requirements,” Hermione began and it was pure torture to watch Ron’s face fall. “But,” the witch continued leisurely, “they were really impressed by your work and your interview, and they welcome you to their team.”

There was a moment of stunned silence where the only movement was Ron’s mother who was covering her mouth with her hands, tears already flooding her eyes. 

“I got in?” 

Hermione nodded and went over to her fiancé to pull him into a tight hug. 

That seemed to have made Ron snap out of his stupor. “I’M GOING TO BE AN AUROR!” he yelled and Harry and Draco watched in amusement how their friend was running around the house, telling everyone no matter if they wanted to listen or not, that the youngest of the Weasley sons was going to be an Auror. 

XXX

The Granger-Weasley wedding at the end of June was a very crowded affair.

The first thing Draco did after the ceremony was abandon his mother and take two flutes of champagne from the self-refilling service station and down them one after the other. 

Better. 

Admittedly, he had been warned about Mrs Weasley’s perfectionist streak she had exhibited in the weeks leading up to Bill’s and Fleur’s wedding, yet it had in no way prepared him for the combined force of both soon to be mothers-in-law. 

One glance over his shoulder told him that Harry was still busy with the newly-weds, so Draco headed over to Theodore whom he had spotted before his run to the alcohol. 

“Good to see you, Theo!” 

“Draco, hi.” The man looked slightly better than when Draco had last seen him. Graduating seemed to do him good. 

“So, how has your June been so far? Are you the better Mario?”

The werewolf smiled. “Yes. But I had more practise with my Muggle friends than Seamus.”

“Nice to hear you’re getting along. Have you been hanging out?” Yes, Malfoys were masters of subtlety. 

Theodore shrugged. “A bit.”

When all Draco did was smirk suggestively, the other man blushed a deep shade of red. 

“Oh, are there dirty details?”

If possible, Theo turned even redder. “No, it’s not like that…”

“So you don’t like him?” To hell with subtlety, Draco was curious now. 

“I do. And I think he likes me, too?”

“Well, we’re at a wedding. There is alcohol, there will be dancing – and have you seen the floral arrangements? All very romantic. And what do you know, Seamus is here as well! So if you want to turn that question mark at the end of your sentence there into an exclamation mark, tonight’s the night.”

The former Slytherin smiled shyly and didn’t argue. Good. 

Things got even better when Draco caught Seamus’s eye across the crowd and waved him to their table. 

“Great, now I release Theo into your care while I look for the best man, I believe the band is about to open for the first dance and Harry promised me to join me on the dance floor,” Draco told the Irish man and – with a wink at Theodore – he disappeared into the crowd, utterly pleased with his matchmaking skills. 

XXX

“I’m actually married, mate.”

“Why do you sound so surprised? Didn’t the way your mother was freaking out all of last month give you a clue about what was going to happen?”

Harry knew what Ron meant, but he couldn’t help the teasing. Not when his best friend was staring at his bride – currently dancing with Draco who had been promised the first dance after husband and father – like he had only just realised that they were bonded for life now. 

“Don’t be silly, Harry. I mean, I’m married. For life, you know. It just feels so…. Huge.”

“Any regrets?”

“No!” Ron finally tore his eyes from Hermione and whipped around to look at Harry, eyes wide. “She’s the one!”

“Then what are we talking about?”

“I dunno, mate. I guess it’s just a big change. Being a husband. How can you be a husband anyway? What do I have to do?”

“Honour her in good times and in bad,” Harry quoted. “Ron, listen to me. You’ve hunted Horcruxes with her. You’ve fought in a war together. Just keep going like you have been and if there’s something she wants you to do, she’ll say it.”

That seemed to be enough for now and Ron finally sighed, straightening in his chair. 

“Yeah. Thanks, mate.”

“That’s why I’m here.”

They sat in silence for a while, both looking at their dancing partners. 

“You ever think about marriage?”

Harry nearly fell off his chair. “What?!”

“It’s just, you’re really happy together. And mate, I never thought I’d say this, but you’re a great couple. Blimey, I’ve never seen you so happy!” 

Harry hesitated. All Ron had said was true, but… marriage? “I don’t think Draco is the kind of guy who wants to get married.” 

“What makes you say that?”

“Ron, same-sex marriages aren’t legal in the Wizarding World. And besides,” Harry added in a rush, “while we were dancing, I, well, I told him I loved him and he called me sappy.” He’d have been mad if Draco hadn’t added “I love you, too” and kissed him chastely right after.

“Well. Perhaps he’ll change his mind one day. What about you?”

“I’ve never given it a lot of thought before, you know? I mean, until a year ago, I wasn’t sure if I’d survive long enough to become of age, so a big ceremony and a white picket fence haven’t really been on my radar….” Harry sighed and emptied his glass of champagne. “And now I find that I don’t need to. Not yet, anyway.”

“Well, if you ever do, I’m sure my Mom will be happy to plan your wedding,” Ron grinned and Harry groaned, the past days’ troubles still present in his mind. 

“Hell, no!” 

XXX

It was almost time for dinner to start when Harry found Draco lingering around the edges of the dance floor near the drinks table, champagne in hand. His boyfriend was engrossed but, following his line of vision, Harry couldn’t say what or whom he was watching.

“What are you doing?” Harry whispered in Draco’s ear and the wizard promptly spilled the contents of his glass all over the floor. 

“Why’d you sneak up on me?”

“I didn’t. What’s got you so distracted?” With a flick of his wand, Harry cleaned the mess on the floor and snatched Draco a new glass from the table next to him.

The blond accepted the glass, smiled and nodded towards the centre of the dance floor. Where Seamus was dancing with Theodore Nott. There wasn’t much space between their bodies. 

Harry spluttered. “When did that happen?”

He crammed his mind for any clues. Had he missed something? The only thing he remembered was a conversation about Mario Cart back at Hogwarts, but nothing that would point to anything romantic. 

Draco smirked. “It started at the party. Theo and Seamus have been meeting up to play some sort of game over the past weeks.”

“And why are you so smug about this?” Harry asked, although he began to suspect that Draco might have had a hand in recent events. 

His boyfriend sipped his drink and looked at him through long eye lashes. “I might have been playing matchmaker.”

“And why, if I may ask?”

Draco passed the champagne to his left hand and slipped his right arm around Harry’s waist, pulling him closer. Out of reflex, Harry’s own arm found its way around Draco’s, resting on his hip. 

“Theo was the only friend I had in Slytherin. And he was too shy to do anything about his self-imposed exile from all social contact. So I dragged him to the party. And when I realised Seamus was interested, I told gave him the ‘don’t you dare toy with him or you will become acquainted with the real Malfoy wrath’ speech, and I was the one who suggested to Seamus that he dance with Theo now. I might have bribed the DJ to play a slow song next.”

As if on cue, the music changed and Harry watched, enticed, how Seamus and Theo froze for a moment. Then, the Irish man pulled Theodore closer and continued dancing. 

“You’re bloody brilliant, Draco.”

“I know,” he drawled. “That’s why you love me.”

“I thought that was a sappy thing of me to say.”

“It’s only sappy when it’s during the first dance at a wedding, surrounded by flowers and lights and couples…”

Harry chuckled and looked back at the dance floor. Theo was looking down now, Seamus’ mouth was slightly open and the intensity of their gaze carried all the way to Harry. 

He held his breath and could feel Draco sneer next to him. 

Then, slowly, Seamus leaned up, tipped his head back, and met Theo’s lips. The man stilled and for a second, Harry feared he’d flee the sight. Then, however, Theo kissed back. 

Harry released the breath he hadn’t realised he was holding. 

“You’re the spitting image of a swooning school girl, Potter.”

“Says the matchmaker, Malfoy,” Harry shot back but he was blushing nonetheless. 

Draco put his glass down and wound his other arm around Harry’s body, pressing them together from groin to chest. Which was not a very decent position to be in, Harry noted. 

“Well, I find your romantic side quite endearing.” With that, Draco rolled his hips and Harry had to use every ounce of discipline he owned to stop the moan trying to escape his throat. 

“Wh-what are you doing, Draco?”

The blonde leaned in even closer, brushing his lips against the skin of Harry’s neck, sending a shiver down and up Harry’s spine. 

“I’d love to suck you off, Harry,” Draco whispered into his ear and Harry had to bite his lip. He felt his pants getting tighter. “And then I want you to fuck me as fast as you can.” 

Draco leaned back, gave Harry another smouldering look, and stepped past him. 

Foolishly happy and already embarrassingly much aroused, Harry followed Draco past the tent, the house and down the hill towards the broom shed. Once inside, the blond threw Harry against the closed door and fell to his knees as graceful as only Draco could, opening his fly. 

“You realise that Ron and Hermione won’t ever let us forget this if they find our, right?” Harry whispered as Draco palmed his quickly hardening cock.

“And yet you followed me.” A look down confirmed Harry’s suspicion – Draco was smirking. When he caught Harry watching, he licked the wet tip of his cock and Harry’s breath hitched. 

Draco continued teasing, licking along the shaft, sucking the balls into his mouth, making Harry moan. 

“Patience, Potter. I said I wanted you to fuck me, any premature orgasm would be counterproductive.”

Before Harry could reply, Draco swallowed him down until he felt his cock hitting the back of Draco’s throat. 

It took all his self-control not to come when the man in front of him opened his pants and performed the lubrication and protective spells while sucking Harry off. 

As soon as Draco was finished, Harry pulled him off, retrieved his wand and got rid of their clothes. A few movements was all it took and he had Draco pressed against the door, his legs hooked around Harry’s waist, his penis leaving a trail of precome on Harry’s stomach. 

When he was sure Draco was pressed hard enough against the door, Harry’s hand slid down to align himself and he pushed forward in one, hard thrust that had Draco crying out. 

“You said as fast as I can, didn’t you?” Harry mumbled against the skin of Draco’s neck. 

His partner made a strangled noise in the back of his throat that told Harry he was hitting Draco’s prostate with every movement, so he doubled his speed, licking across Draco’s chest, chasing the scars and playing with his nipples. 

The blond came incredibly fast between their bodies, clenching around Harry’s cock buried deep within him which was enough to send Harry over the edge.

They stayed there for a long time, leaning against each other, breathing in the smell of sex and broom shed.

XXX

It was well past three in the morning when the last guests left, amongst them Seamus and Theo. 

“Glad to see it went according to plan,” Draco smirked as they come over to say good-bye. 

“Whose plan?” Seamus asked and turned to Theo. 

“My plan,” Draco specified. “I see I’m quite the matchmaker.” Seamus laughed and the werewolf smiled. “So what’s the plan? More dates playing Mario?”

“Mario Cart, Draco,” Seamus drawled. “But if you need to pry, I’m taking Theo out to dinner and a movie on Tuesday.”

Something registered in Draco’s mind. Monday was a full-moon night. Why would Seamus wait until Tuesday to see Theo again, unless he already knew?

Draco raised a questioning eyebrow at his fellow Slytherin, who shrugged hesitantly, blushing a bit. 

“He knows.”

“Good.” Draco smiled at Seamus, daring him to say something. 

“Well, it’ll be hilarious, really,” the Irishman said. “Me Mum and Dad will be shocked that you’re a man anyway, so hey, the werewolf thing won’t phase them, don’t worry.”

Theo’s eyes widened. “Your parents? You want me to meet them?”

“Sure, someday. Soon-ish? No rush!” Seamus cast his eyes down. 

Draco watched Theo adjust to the idea, obviously surprised that Seamus took their relationship so seriously already. He smiled when he caught Draco’s encouraging expression. 

“Alright.”

“Brilliant!” Seamus took hold of Theo’s hand. “Come on, I’ll walk you out.”

They waved at Draco and headed to the outskirts of the Burrow while Draco turned, looking for the trio. 

“Irish and Wolfboy have left the grounds,” Draco announced as he threw himself into the chair next to Harry who was sitting opposite the very tired though very happy looking bride and groom. 

“Together?” Ron asked in confusion and Hermione and Draco exchanged amused looks. 

“Yes, Harry hadn’t caught on either until they were snogging in the middle of the dance floor.”

Ron seemed at a loss for words and Draco took the chance to steal his boyfriend’s glass of… pumpkin juice, it turned out. 

“They noticed, by the way.”

Draco glanced at Harry and followed his gaze towards the newly-weds. He raised an eye-brow.

“Mate, I will never enter that broom-shed again!” Ron swore, though he looked more amused than anything. Hermione merely shook her head. 

“Draco, get your own glass.”

“Why should I when yours is right there?”

“Because it’s mine and I want to make a toast?”

“Celebrities nowadays,” Draco sighed dramatically but got up nonetheless. When he returned with his own glass of juice, he looked at his boyfriend expectantly. “So?”

Harry cleared his throat. “I just wanted to say that I’m glad you’re all here with me, that the wedding is over and I will never have to hear about floral arrangements again” - Ron snickered and Draco groaned in solitary suffering – “and that nothing is standing in the way of us moving in together.”

Harry looked each of them in the eyes and Draco knew everything his Chosen One didn’t say. That he was glad they’d be starting Auror training, that Hermione would join the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, that he would let Draco take him to Paris, that they had survived their final year, Greyback, Romilda Vane and everything the Prophet had thrown at them. 

Harry opened his mouth to go on, but Draco cut him off. 

“Potter, I swear to Merlin, if you turn this into a pathetically romantic moment – or wait, what was it called…”

“Chick flick moment,” Hermione supplied between amused giggling. 

“Right, if you turn this into a chick flick moment, Potter, I will shove you off the Eiffel Tower!” 

“You do know that the top of the Eiffel Tower is one of the most romantic places in Europe, don‘t you, Malfoy?” Harry smirked, raising his glass. 

“Not when I’m shoving you off it,” he protested, but his heart wasn’t really in it. 

“Come on, let me try,” Ron interrupted, raising his glass as well and clearing his throat. “To a new part of our lives.”

It was simple yet entailed everything that was running through their heads and Draco was briefly impressed by how eloquent Ron could be if he needed to. 

They were all smiling now, clinking glasses and drinking to their future. 

Draco considered them one by one, Hermione, Ron, and then Harry and felt his chest tighten despite his best intentions to keep his emotions at bay. 

He didn’t realise he was staring at his boyfriend until the latter chuckled. 

“Draco, I hate to tell you, but this is a chick flick moment.”

He felt his cheeks flush and thought what the heck. 

“So be it,” he murmured and closed the distance between them, capturing Harry’s lips in a kiss that held more emotion than Draco ever thought he could be able to feel at once. 

When they pulled apart, Draco saw a glint in Harry’s eyes. He shook his head minutely, trying to communicate the “Don’t say it” without actually voicing his thoughts. 

Harry’s smile turned into a smirk and he heard Ron laugh across the table. 

“Draco, I love you.”

Groaning, Draco buried his face in the crook of Harry’s neck but he couldn’t help laughing along with the others. 

Draco didn’t need to answer Harry, for his Chosen One knew that he was just that – Draco’s Chosen One. 

 

THE END OF PART III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's over. Wow.... A big THANKS to every single reader! I'd love to hear how you liked it, ConCrit is also appreciated!
> 
> Also, a million kudos and thanks to vernie_klein, my beloved beta, who will stay with me for part IV, V and VI and "Gorgeous". Which brings me to...
> 
> **PART IV** , which is a special one, though. I will first publish the PREQUEL to Hallway-verse part IV, so next Saturday, look for **"In A Mirror, Darkly"** :) Once the prequel is finished, I will include it in the Hallway-verse, probably.  
>  WARNING: "In a Mirror, Darkly" is a Mirror Universe (idea inspired by the Startrek: Enterprise episode of the same name) which features underage non-con and dark!Harry. Hallway-Canon Harry and Hallway-Canon Draco will come in part II of "In a Mirror, Darkly".  
> I'm excited how the story will be received.... so please, give me a chance! If you don't like non-con, underage or the mixture of both, wait for chapter 3. It's non-con free from then on. 
> 
> Also, I'd like to invite you to read my newest Harry/Draco AU **"Gorgeous"** , which will be published next Friday if no big catastrophes happen till then.  
> The basic idea of "Gorgeous" is that, three years after the war, Harry runs into Draco Malfoy - in the waiting room of a therapist's office. 
> 
> So, I'll be back and I hope you guys will stay with me <3


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